Royal Albert Dock

Turning around a high-profile site after a stalled first phase requires more than a new plan – it needs a market reset. For the GLA, we defined a high-level delivery and procurement strategy for c. 30 acres at Royal Albert Dock, rebuilding confidence and establishing a credible route to delivery.

• Phase 1 failure and vacancy → Reframed proposition anchored in evidence, viability and place objectives.
• Multiple stakeholders and ambitions → Structured engagement and a market-tested delivery approach that credible developers can respond to.
• Innovative delivery structure → Structuring and procuring a Master Developer partnership that will ensure place-orientated, comprehensive regeneration in a truly mixed-use setting.

Facts Panel

• Location: Royal Albert Dock, London Borough of Newham
• Client: Greater London Authority (GLA)
• Role: • Strategic development advisory • Planning • Delivery and procurement strategy
• Scale: c. 30 acres (remaining site)
• Outcome to date: High-level delivery strategy and implementation plan with procurement recommendations; retained to implement delivery strategy including Master Developer partner procurement.  Procurement launched Q3 2025.
• Policy context: •  London Plan • Royal Docks Enterprise Zone • Opportunity Area • Borough policy
• ME Team: Oliver Maury, Jenny Rydon, Matthew Hayes, Balthazar Butcher

The Story

Royal Albert Dock is a strategic East London site with Enterprise Zone status and high expectations – but the first phase of delivery stalled, leaving a visible legacy of vacancy. Following ABP’s exit and the receivership of phase 1, the remaining c. 30 acres reverted to GLA control. The challenge was to reposition the site from “stalled” to “investable” in a way that aligned with policy, market conditions and local priorities.

Through a collaborative and agile approach, we brought together strategic development advisory and planning expertise around a clear organising idea: reset the baseline, re-engage the market, reframe the proposition and secure the right partner. This involved evidence-led capacity testing, a clear statement of objectives, and early dialogue with stakeholders and adjacent landowners to rebuild trust and momentum.

We carried out a comprehensive policy and strategy review across geographies to identify consistent redevelopment themes, ran structured engagement with GLA teams, neighbouring institutions, and public stakeholders, rebased capacity and use mix with masterplanners, and convened both external market soundings and an internal Montagu Evans think tank to test commercial feasibility in the context of evolving sector opportunities. We workshopped objectives, delivery principles and parameters with the client, and drafted an implementation plan with high-level recommendations on delivery structure and procurement route. The GLA has retained us to implement the delivery strategy and help manage the process of Master Developer partner procurement, which commenced in  Q3 2025.

Value Unlocked

The project now has a reframed, evidence-based proposition, a clear set of aligned objectives and parameters, and an implementable route to market through recommended delivery and procurement structures.

Comment

“A focused reset – grounded in policy, market reality and place outcomes – is giving Royal Albert Dock the credible platform it needs to attract the right delivery partner.” – Oliver Maury, Partner, Montagu Evans