Henley Halebrown and Peter Barber land Winchester Central job

Henley Halebrown and Peter Barber Architects have been appointed to lead the design for the next incarnation of plans for Winchester’s main regeneration site.

Winchester City Council’s development partner, Jigsaw by Partnerships & Places, said Henley Halebrown would be lead architect for the Central Winchester Regeneration and Barber would be the project’s housing architect.

Previous plans to redevelop a city shopping centre and bus station known as the Silver Hill site with £165m proposals designed by Allies & Morrison hit the buffers in 2015 after Winchester’s appointment of a development partner for the 3ha scheme was found to be unlawful.

Three years later the council adopted a JTP-designed supplementary planning document for the redevelopment of a 4.5ha chunk of the city centre with new retail space, commercial space, cultural space, a new bus interchange and up to 300 homes.

Jigsaw, which is a partnership between Genr8 Kajima, Igloo Regeneration and Thriving Investments, said Henley Halebrown and Barber would work with other architects to create a “diverse mix of uses”, sustainable homes and vibrant public spaces.

Oliver Barker, senior development manager at Genr8 Kajima, said the combination of Henley Halebrown, Barber and a “forward thinking local authority with a real vision” was an “exciting opportunity”.

“Good design is at the heart of our plans for the city centre, and by creating attractive and comfortable living and working spaces, we can ensure that the rejuvenated city will become a desirable place for people of all ages,”mhe said.

The development team said the Central Winchester Regeneration would better connect the site – including Kings Walk Shopping Centre, the former site of the Friarsgate Medical Centre and the bus station – to the wider city and district.

In 2022, London practice Studio Multi was appointed to design a meanwhile makeover for Kings Walk while long-term redevelopment proposals are worked up.