Supermarket giant plans first housing venture with hundreds of affordable homes

The residential development is designed to be “car-free”, with residents encouraged to use public transport. The store will have a 400-space car park for shoppers.

Asda said the scheme would create “a new town centre” for the area, which sits within the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation regeneration site.

Work on the planning application is under way and will be submitted to the council later this year.

The plans allow the existing Park Royal store to remain open while work is carried out on the new store development, Asda said. 

Ian Lawrence, head of mixed-use developments at Asda, said the venture marked “a significant milestone for the business”, allowing it to “maximise the full potential of our property portfolio for the first time”.

He said the retailer was “also unlocking further opportunities to release value” from its property portfolio.

Craig Carson, managing director of Barratt West London, said the builder has “a strong track record in both rejuvenating brownfield sites and delivering new homes in the Borough of Ealing, so it’s a partnership and site that makes perfect sense for us”.

He continued: “This transaction is a sign that there is still land to be unlocked in the capital and reflects one of the market’s largest land transactions since 2019.”

Ross Bettridge, director in the development consultancy at Newsteer Real Estate, which is advising Asda, said: “Retailers such as Asda at Park Royal provide great opportunities to utilise brownfield sites and deliver much-needed housing for people living in the capital.”

Fellow retailer John Lewis has also made forays into the build-to-rent market in recent years. Last year John Lewis’ plans for a residential scheme in Ealing were criticised after 20% of the homes were earmarked for affordable tenures, lower than council recommendations.