Emerging Masterplan Ideas

The images above were taken in December 2021, and show the Broadwalk Shopping Centre, Edgware Bus Station, and the surrounding area as they are today.

Our emerging masterplan ideas have been informed by our engagement with the community, which is summarised in the following boards, and have been discussed with officers through the pre-application process.

Our aim is to breathe new life back into Edgware. We want to bring people back into the town centre and create a great place for people to relax and enjoy the area.

Barnet Council’s emerging Local Plan and Edgware Growth Area Supplementary Planning Document (SPD), alongside the Greater London Authority’s (GLA) London Plan 2021all identify Edgware town centre as a place where development could improve the local area.

Combined, these policies seek to focus housing growth in this well connected major town centre. Alongside this, the policy also calls for new retail, commercial, and public spaces for Edgware. Our project will need to address these policy conditions through our emerging masterplan.

It was often advertised as an escape from the hustle and bustle of London, with open grass areas and fresh air all just a short trip away at the end of the Northern Line.

Building on its agricultural past, Edgware became a great place for businesses to grow, especially in the 20th Century. A handful of big-name businesses got their start in Edgware or based their head offices here:

Edgware is a diverse area, with approximately 40% of the local population identifying as BAME at the 2011 census, and 37% not born in the UK. Edgware also has the third-highest Jewish population in London, with 33% of local people identifying as Jewish.

Edgware celebrates its Jewish population in the local community

It is also an intergenerational place, with a higher percentage of both people ages 65 and over and people ages 15 and under than the London average:

• 22.9% of the population are children, ages 0-15
• 61.6% of the population are working-age people, ages 16-64
• 15.5% of the population are older people, ages 65 and above

You told us Edgware is ready for a change that will improve on and complement the current town centre and create a more welcoming place for generations to come.

You told us that although Edgware was once an exciting and vibrant place to be, it now feels like it could use some positive changes to bring it into the 21st century.

We have heard loud and clear:

• "Edgware use to be lovely. It is now full of cheap shops, is dirty and dated."
• "I have lived here for over 31 years and this area has deteriorated so badly. I remember it as a teen as a vibrant place, cinema, shopping with so much choice."

You have told us that having connections to the open, green space in your local area is a key part of maintaining your health and wellbeing. In particular, over the past two years having an easily accessible green area nearby has been essential for keeping well:

• "Lived in Edgware for years. The area could be improved with more greenery, walkways, maybe a small square with shops and cafes, outside seating."
• "Please create space that is attractive, harmonious with the surrounding area, eco-friendly and a destination retail area."

At the moment, the Edgware Bus Garage (located behind the bus station) blocks access to the back of the site. We think moving the bus garage underground would help us make better connections through the town centre, particularly to the green spaces and existing nature reserves nearby.

Green spaces

Our early ideas for improving access to green space on the site centre around creating new landscaped areas throughout the masterplan. By providing more trees, grass, seating, and play areas, as well as opening up access to spaces like Deansbrook Nature Reserve, we can encourage people to use the site to improve their health and wellbeing, or just to come and relax.

The development sits at the heart of green corridors through Edgware, supporting healthy and biodiverse routes

We could landscape different areas of the site:

      

Water features

Alongside more greenery, water features can create calming and relaxing spaces to unwind in an urban setting. The map below shows how a sustainable water strategy can connect with the wider blue network while creating features on the site.

This plan shows where we could create access to water features as part of a wider water strategy

These images below show some ideas for how we could integrate water features to create interactive and visual effects into the landscape.

    

Nature to nature

The landscape plan below illustrates how natural green spaces can link routes for people to walk, cycle and relax, from Station Road through to the nature reserve in the east, and towards Edgware Community Hospital to the South.

Whilst Edgware is well-connected to central London, we have heard that local transport options linking Edgware to surrounding neighbourhoods can be limited. We want to ensure that local people are as well-connected to Edgware Central as they are to wider London.

Some feedback we have received from locals includes:

• "Fewer cars, more walking and cycling space."
• "Access to and from the bus garage is poor. It causes traffic problems on Station Road. Needs redesigning."

Building on the development principles that we shared previously and which were based on your feedback, we have pulled together a set of commitments on sustainability that consider how the site will work for the community now and in the future.

We are keen to engage with you on these ideas and understand how we could improve them to better meet the needs of local people.

We have been speaking with people at our drop-in sessions at The Meeting Room, and have set this website to hear feedback on the designs.

If you have any other ideas on how we can engage with your community we’d love to hear from you.

In addition to the interactive buttons throughout these pages, you also can share your thoughts by:

• Speaking to a member of our team during one of our consultation drop-in sessions
• Filling out our feedback form online here
• Emailing us at edgware@ballymoregroup.com