What is happening on the old Civic Centre site?

This article outlines the current position on several issues of concern connected with this site. It covers:

• redevelopment of two of the existing buildings
• plans for the remainder of the site
• future of the Bishops Palace
• protecting Bromley Palace Park
• security of the site
• name of the development

Background

Bromley Council sold the site of the former Civic Centre at Stockwell Close to Galliard Group; the sale was completed on 31 March 2025. Since that announcement it has also been revealed that Galliard Group have also purchased the site of the Churchill Theatre.

Galliard's Plans for the site

Galliard's proposals are to retain Bromley Palace (it is of course a Grade 2 listed building, less the wings which were added much later). Two existing blocks (Stockwell and North Block) will be retained and converted to apartments, providing an estimated 100 new homes. There will be new housing blocks built on other parts of the site, no more than 5 storeys high, some of which may be for older residents. 

The redevelopment of the site will be in two phases, first the refurbishment of two of the blocks, then the demolition of the other buildings (except the Palace - see below) and building of flats.

Refurbishment of existing blocks

Galliard plan to redevelop Stockwell Block and North Block to provide flats - mainly 1 bedroom. The details are available to view on the Bromley Planning Portal:

25/01755/CUETC3 (Stockwell Building)

25/01756/CUETC3 (North Building)

They had wanted these plans to be approved using a fast track system known as a prior approval application - this is a much faster process than a full application, and is allowed when there is no change to the footprint or height of the building. However, their planning applications were refused by Bromley Council Planning Committee on 26th June. The decisions followed the recommendations of planning officers, who had made these recommendations based on legal opinions they had received and the argument were largely based on the curtillage and previous use. 

The members of the planning committee all expressed a view that they would welcome a full planning application which would give residents and councillors an opportunity to properly examine the plans including key details missing from the prior approval application and look forward to working with Galliard to develop this important site. 

There is a desperate need for more housing in the borough, and one bedroom flats are part of the wider housing mix that Galliard are proposing for the whole site. If they are affordable, then they will fill a real gap in the housing market in Bromley where first time buyers struggle to find a property. However, there must be certainty that the flats themselves will be good quality homes for the future residents, that at least 35% of the flats will be affordable, that there will be sufficient natural light, that there are strong fire safety measures in place, that vehicular access to the flats (cars as well as delivery and utility vehicles) is not restricted to access via Rafford Way.

We don't know what Galliard will do next on these two blocks - they may appeal, or they may choose to submit their plans via the normal planning process.

Plans for the remainder of the site

Galliard will demolish the other buildings and have not yet published their final plans for this part of the development. They have launched a consultation with residents - details are here. The indicative drawing is shown above.

As far as we know, the current plans are for one block with a view over the park aimed at people in retirement. The other blocks will have a range of flats with different numbers of bedrooms. While plans are changing regularly we are assured that the blocks will not be higher than five storeys, and no taller than the current buildings. We don't know how many homes are proposed.

Bishop's Palace

This building is protected as a Grade 2 listed building (apart from the wings) so cannot be redeveloped. There are no definite answers on what Galliard plan to do with this building, but indications are that it could be a cafe downstairs with the upstairs as offices.

Protecting the Bromley Palace Park

We are very concerned to protect the park. Volunteers have been working hundreds of hours trying to bring the park back to a good standard after years of neglect by the Council. However, since the Council left the site the volunteers have struggled to gain regular access to the park, and to have use of electricity, water, toilet facilities and somewhere to store their tools. Galliard have been working closely with the volunteers and we hope these problems are now resolved. However, Galliard did cut down a significant tree (which we think was more than 300 years old) only days after taking possession of the site. We are assured by Bromley Council that the remainder of the trees on site are protected.

It's important that access to the park is maintained for all Bromley residents, both during construction and afterwards. We need to make sure that residents of the new development do not have any special access to the park - we are concerned that the boundary between the new development and the park is clearly delineated in the plans for the development. We also don't want the developers to use the name “Bromley Palace Park” for their development - that is the name of the park, a different name is important to underline the separation of the two areas.

Protecting the site

Bromley Council moved out of the site on 31 March 2025, turning off water and power to the buildings, and leaving considerable debris on site. Inevitably a site like this quickly started to attract trespassers and visitors intent on anti-social behaviour. Galliard have tried to prevent this by letting parts of the site on short term contracts to interested groups - the Metropolitan Police are currently renting part of the site for use by their dog training unit. There were rumours that the Palace might be let for occasional use as a film set, but so far there's no confirmation of this.