Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks, London E3

Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks is a significant mixed-use neighbourhood scheme in East London by St William, a regeneration-led housing developer and a member of the prominent Berkeley Group.

The development is set in Newham in the heart of a former industrial gas production and storage location on the left bank of the River Lea. The project involves the regeneration of a brownfield site, the conservation of its rich heritage assets and its transformation into a vibrant riverside destination with modern housing comprising over 2,100 new homes.

Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks will incorporate seven original and restored circular metal guide frame structures that will house seven newly built residential buildings up to 10 floors in height. In addition, six new cylindrical buildings, ranging from 15 to 33 storeys tall, will be constructed and arranged around the site's central core. Harnessing the site’s distinctive topography, the scheme combines residential, commercial, retail, and public spaces. The public realm will be a fully accessible area and home to a new riverside park.

The Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks masterplan is by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners (RSHP), the award-winning British architecture studio that is behind many distinctive London residences such as Neo Bankside, Riverlight, Merano, One Hide Park, and Chelsea Barracks.

The architect’s signature decorative detail — the vertical strips of colour, will be added to the exterior of all 13 residential buildings.

"Form, height and material characteristics of the proposed buildings within the gas holders take their cues from the frames themselves, preserving their memorable image, silhouetted against the sky as icons of an industrial past. A water feature will be added to the centre of the site, set within the footprint of a former gas holder that was destroyed during WWII.”

The development aims to exceed in terms of energy efficiency and carbon emissions and to achieve a BREEAM (sustainable building certification) grade of Excellent. Low-energy lighting with ASHP (air source heat pump) technology is planned for heating and cooling as well as triple glazing.

The new green infrastructure for the site has been based on the historic marshland and the current water-dominated landscape setting. The present terrain will have to go through a decontamination and remediation process too. The team involved in this complex undertaking include Gillespies, Montagu Evans and Temple Group — leaders in landscaping design, property consultancy and sustainable urban development.  

Construction of Bromly-by-Bow Gasworks is likely to commence in 2025 after all the planning agreements have been finalised.

The redevelopment lies in the London Borough of Newham and has received planning consent from its Strategic Development Committee. The 23-acre site is an important regeneration and growth area for this East London borough and is part of the Lower Lea Valley Opportunity and the Thames Gateway development areas.

Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks history

Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks were designed by engineers Joseph Clark and Thomas Kirkham and built by the Imperial Gas Light & Coke Company between 1870 and 1875. The eight striking gas-storing iron structures defined the East End skyline at the time and were targeted in the German aerial bombing campaigns during WWII. In September 1940, one gasholder was destroyed and the remaining seven were used for storing gas until 2010. Gas production on the site ceased in 1976.

As the ‘largest remaining group of Victorian gas holders in the world’ the Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks structures have been protected by the Grade II listed status from 1984. 

Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks location

Bromley-by-Bow Gasworks site is located in East London, a short distance from two stations: Bromley-by-Bow Station (District and Circle Line for the City of London and Stratford) and West Ham Station (DLR for Canary Wharf and Stratford: C2C rail for Fenchurch Station, City of London and South Essex).

The location is excellent for accessing London’s centres of finance and trade, as well as the capital’s great outdoors such as the nearby Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Victoria Park and Hackney Marshes.

The River Lea’s towpath skirts along the site’s west boundary and is a pedestrian link with Stratford, Canary Wharf, the Thames and the Royal Docks. The river is connected to an intricate network of channels called the Bow Back Rivers that create a great environment for various waterside leisure and fitness activities. The waterway's biodiversity and wildlife are impressive and are managed by the London Legacy Development Corporation and The Canal & River Trust. The area has an astonishing wealth of industrial heritage sites. North of the Gasholders is the historic Three Mills Island, and south is the Cody Dock creative hub with a rich programme including ecology, wildlife, birdwatching and gardening. 

The immediate area is currently dominated by distribution warehouses and light-industrial retail parks surrounded by rivers, locks, water reservoirs and docks.

New transport infrastructure including pedestrian and cycling paths will unlock this location for further regeneration and will reconnect it with the urban projects and commercial activity in Bow, Stratford, Poplar, and Canning Town.