Centre set for partial closure

Borough: Queensmere centre to be redeveloped

A Slough shopping centre will partially close in January as initial preparations start on the venue's redevelopment.

Developer British Land will be shutting the western end of the Queensmere Observatory Shopping Centre ahead of the major redevelopment project.

The partial closure will take place in January 2023 following a fourmonth notice period for tenants inside the shopping complex.

This will allow initial preparations for the redevelopment of the centre to ‘commence as quickly as possible’, British Land said.

The eastern end of the Queensmere, as well as the whole of the Observatory Shopping Centre, will remain open and trade will be condensed into a ‘more vibrant environment’ across these areas, the developer added.

British Land said that in recent years, the western end of the Queensmere has been ‘quiet’ and trade ‘low’, resulting in significant vacancies.

Hoardings will be installed on entrances from Wellington Street and Mackenzie Street ahead of the part-closure, with this area no longer accessible to visitors.

Proposals for the Queensmere Shopping Centre include new space for shops and restaurants, with the new space called ‘Slough Central’. There will also be 1,600 homes built and 40,000 sq ft of office space.

In addition, a new town square and urban park form part of the plans.

An outline planning application has been submitted to Slough Borough Council and a decision is expected later this year, with an aim to commence the demolition of the centre by late 2024.

Discussions are ongoing with tenants impacted as a result of the part-closure - including Sports Direct - with an option available to relocate them to units elsewhere in the complex or within the Observatory Shopping Centre.

British Land added it will ‘continue to provide crucial assistance to businesses’ in the town centre as it develops work on the regeneration scheme.

Alex Long, asset manager at British Land, said: “Our exciting proposals for the Queensmere Shopping Centre will build on our long-standing support for the local economy by creating vibrant, sustainable town centre uses for the long-term.

“The part closure of the Queensmere Shopping Centre this autumn will help us to deliver this vision as quickly as possible, as well as improve the outlook of the town centre in the meantime.”