Plans to develop one of the most sustainable office buildings in the country were given the go-ahead as Network Rail’s new national centre received the stamp of approval from Milton Keynes’ planning authority. The centre will bring together teams spread across numerous sites under one eco-friendly roof, improving the way Network Rail coordinates activities to build a bigger and better railway. Network Rail plans to house up to 3,000 employees at the centre, bringing new jobs to the area.

The 400,000 sq ft building will be constructed on the site of a former hockey stadium, revitalising an underused corner of Central Milton Keynes. Councillors voted to approve Network Rail’s plans at a town hall meeting on Thursday night (21 January).

Commenting on the decision, chief executive Iain Coucher said: "Network Rail has made a big commitment to Milton Keynes in choosing the city as the home of our new national centre. Since making that decision we have been overwhelmed by the level of support we have received from all parts of the community.

"I’d like to offer personal thanks to the many hundreds of local people who took the time to speak to our project team or visit our website to have their say on our plans for Milton Keynes. Thanks in no small part to their feedback, we have got an exciting design for the national centre which will be one of the greenest buildings in the country and a stunning addition to Central Milton Keynes."

John Lewis, chief executive of Milton Keynes Partnership, said: "This planning decision is very good news for Milton Keynes as it will pave the way for thousands of new jobs and give us a state of the art national centre. Coming hot on the heels of Milton Keynes being chosen as a World Cup Host city and our outstanding performance in the recent ‘Cities Outlook’ report we have had a very confident start to 2010."

Construction on site is expected to start in August, with the building scheduled to open in 2012. The design for the new building includes a host of eco-friendly features including extensive ‘living roofs’ which will encourage diverse habitats for flora and fauna in the centre of the city and a rainwater harvesting system which will be used to flush toilets and irrigate landscaping.

Following a series of public consultation events held in the city in September, Network Rail incorporated a number of suggestions put forward by residents into the final design, including recharging points for electric vehicles and an allotment on site for fruit and vegetables.

Milton Keynes Partnership, the current owner of the site, has already made great progress in clearing the land to get it ready for development. Network Rail is working with Milton Keynes Partnership to salvage materials from the National Hockey Stadium which can be recycled in the national centre. Wherever possible, building materials will be sourced locally, cutting the number of lorries and further reducing the carbon footprint of the building.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

Eco-friendly

Network Rail is aiming to achieve a BREEAM (2008) Excellent rating for the centre. The proposed development will take advantage of a range of passive measures designed to regulate temperature and reduce energy use, including an optimised orientation, a heavyweight exposed structure, narrow floor plans, high soffits and natural ventilation, which are all complemented by very high efficiency, low carbon systems.

Other environmental features include extensive living roofs that will greatly enhance and encourage diverse habitats for flora and fauna in the centre of Milton Keynes, and sizable rainwater harvesting systems which will be used to flush toilets and irrigate the landscaping.

Public consultation

Almost 900 people attended a series of consultation events held in Milton Keynes in September 2009 – a healthy participation rate and good cross-section of the local community. People were only counted as a participant if they stopped to speak to an exhibitor. Hundreds more leaflets were given out.

In addition there were 960 visits to the consultation website over the course of the consultation. The consultation period was open for six weeks following the exhibition, allowing people to submit comments via email until Friday 16 October 2009.

Timeline

October 2008 – Milton Keynes named as Network Rail’s preferred location for its new national centre.

April 2009 – GMW, the award-winning architects behind the redevelopment of Tower 42 (the Natwest Tower), appointed by Network Rail to design the 400,000 sq ft building.

September 2009 – First images of the national centre revealed as Network Rail carries out a series of public consultation events in Milton Keynes. Nearly 2,000 local people spoke to the project team or visited the consultation website to have their say on the plans.

November 2009 – Formal planning application submitted to Milton Keynes council. Final submission included a number of design amendments put in place following feedback from the public during the consultation period.

December 2009 – BAM Construction awarded pre-construction services agreement by Network Rail to assist in the second stage of the design and procurement process. Also in December, demolition of the former National Hockey Stadium began.

January 2010 – Milton Keynes council formally approves Network Rail’s plans.

July 2010 – Contract awarded for build. August 2010 – Construction on site begins.

Autumn 2012 – Network Rail national centre opens.

For more information contact

Media Relations (National)

t020 3356 8700

emediarelations@networkrail.co.uk

About Network Rail
Network Rail is the 'not for dividend' owner and operator of Britain's railway infrastructure, which includes the tracks, signals, tunnels, bridges, viaducts, level crossings and stations - the largest of which we also manage We aim to provide a safe, reliable and efficient rail infrastructure for freight and passenger trains to use.

Our website: www.networkrail.co.uk

For the Milton Keynes Partnership press office contact Helen Carvalho or Nadir Farrell on 01908 353981 or 01908 353913.

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