London Wall West: deal done to forge ahead with controversial Barbican scheme to demolish historic sites

The Corporation last week green-lit a proposal to enter into a multi-million-pound agreement with the Worshipful Company of Ironmongers to purchase Ferroners’ House for £4 million.

Ferroners’ House is owned by the Company and is attached to the Grade-II listed Ironmongers’ Hall by the Barbican estate.

It also sits on land earmarked for redevelopment as part of the London Wall West project approved by the City of London Corporation in April.

Under that scheme, for which the Corporation was also the applicant, the former Museum of London and Bastion House are to be knocked down with three new office buildings constructed in their place.

The proposal received significant attention from a range of heritage groups, residents and local stakeholders including the Ironmongers’ Company, which initially filed an objection.

Days before the committee meeting the Company however withdrew its representation and submitted a new letter in-favour.

See what’s going on in London - check us out on TikTok

It wrote that after seven years of discussions, “a common interest has emerged in part due to the long term interests of both organizations [sic] to foster a continually improving environment in the City that all those in the area can benefit from, whether residents or workers”.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) wrote in June on the details of the proposed agreement, which as well as the purchase of Ferroners’ House included funding to reimburse the Company’s fees and compensation for potential loss of revenue at Ironmongers’ Hall.

It was due to go before the Court of Common Council for approval in private session but was withdrawn. The LDRS understands a decision could not be made due to there being an outstanding request by the Corporation for a Certificate of Immunity from listing (COI) for the former Museum of London and Bastion House.

COIs are legal documents issued by the Government guaranteeing a building will not be listed for five years. Bastion House and the former Museum of London have previously received COIs in 2015 and 2019.

In mid-November Historic England informed interested parties that the most recent COI had been granted, effectively enabling the Corporation to vote on the proposed deal with the Company at last week’s Court meeting.

This was again done in private after members of the public and the press had been removed. The LDRS understands the deal was agreed.

It is also understood there was some opposition to the proposal aired in the meeting, including concern that the Corporation is paying for a building which a potential future developer of the site may not need or require to be demolished.

Applications for both the London Wall West redevelopment and the demolition of Ferroners’ House have since been updated as ‘approved’ on the Corporation’s planning portal.

Averil Baldwin, Chair of the Barbican Quarter Action (BQA) campaign, previously told the LDRS the group was ‘disappointed’ the deal was done ‘without proper elected member scrutiny’.

“We believe that the option to retrofit the site should be preferred as it is the cleanest, fastest and least risky route to redevelopment,” she said. “If approved by the council this deal will likely raise the cost for any re-use developer.

“It is yet another example of the City making short-term decisions with little regard for long-term consequences. We expect better from our elected representatives.”

Go beyond the story - sign up for our LondonWorld newsletter

The City of London Corporation was approached but did not wish to comment. The Ironmongers’ Company was also contacted, though had not responded at the time of publication.

The London Wall West proposal involves the demolition of Bastion House and the former Museum of London to make way for three office-led buildings between five and 17 storeys tall.

The redevelopment scheme received significant resistance, with questions raised about claims relating to expected carbon emissions and the necessity of the City’s drive for more office floorspace.