Battersea Power Station Visit Highlights the Heritage Potential of Redevelopment Schemes

The Bognor Regis Regeneration Board were delighted to receive an invitation to tour the newly launched Battersea Power Station redevelopment. The tour was arranged by Raof Daud, former Chair of BRRB and Non-Executive Director of the BPS Development Company and included Bognor Regis MP Nick Gibb and the Board’s current Chair, Dr Dave Cooper. The iconic Grade II* listed Battersea Power Station recently re-opened as a new shopping and leisure destination. The legendary London landmark and surrounding area has been brought back to life as one of the most innovative mixed use neighbourhoods in the world – a place for locals, tourists and residents to enjoy a unique blend of shops, bars, restaurants, leisure and entertainment venues, parks and historical spaces.

Dave Cooper commented, “While the scale and complexity of this redevelopment goes beyond anything currently proposed for Bognor Regis, we are particularly interested in the approach taken to the history of the building and its location and in the development company’s work with the existing community. The retention and restoration of key architectural areas as features of interest in their own right, such as the fully intact Switch Room, demonstrate how sympathetic redevelopment can preserve and promote heritage while repurposing buildings for modern living. With vision and ambition there is potential to apply this approach to strategic sites within Bognor Regis to ensure that our unique history is central to creating a town fit to face the challenges of the future.”