The Basildon Westgate Masterplan sets out a 20-year framework to reimagine the western edge of Basildon’s town centre, shaped by guiding principles drawn through ongoing engagement with residents and stakeholders. Basildon was one of England’s first New Towns, established in the 1950’s and celebrated for its progressive civic design and structured urban layout. Today however, the western edge presents a fragmented townscape, with under-occupied retail units, unclear pedestrian routes and extensive surface level parking detracting from cultural and historic assets including St Martin’s Square and The Millenium Bell Tower.
The masterplan aims to respond to these challenges and restore Basildon’s civic identity, modernising the western edge to meet today’s housing and civic needs. Our design creates a walkable, green and civic-orientated town centre, shaped by a network of clear and connected routes, stitching the Westgate Quarter back into its surrounding context. Enhanced connections to the western edge run adjacent to new north-south routes as well as an extension of the existing east-west commercial spine. Here, the street is reactivated with a renewed offering of retail, hospitality and leisure uses, supported by a series of outdoor spaces for markets, fairs and community gatherings.
A redefined public realm will connect a series of landscaped squares, pocket green spaces and active streets that invite people to dwell, play and socialise. Improved routes and generous walkways strengthen the connections to Gloucester Park and the town’s western green edge. A significant part of the urban strategy sets out a coherent street hierarchy which will limit vehicles to the masterplan edges, prioritising pedestrians and cyclists over vehicles, and reinstating the pedestrian-friendly ethos of the original New Town. In addition, a new urban park is proposed, introducing more space for play and community activity, offering a verdant contrast to Basildon’s urban fabric and re-embedding nature at the centre of daily life.
A series of key buildings and new civic spaces anchor the masterplan arrangement. At its core, a new cultural and leisure venue forms a landmark destination, providing a 3,500-person auditorium, flexible commercial space facing onto a new public square, its distinctive butterfly roof referencing Basildon’s heritage. Nearby, a new mixed-use civic hub brings together public services, healthcare and workspace under one roof. This new ‘Central Hub’ is placed in a highly accessible location with local bus and train services within walking distance, supporting the overall masterplan vision to make Basildon easier to navigate by foot, bike and public transport.
The building implements a rhythmic façade of brick piers and recessed bays, while clean lines and canopied roof forms recall Basildon’s New Town character.
Around these civic buildings in the masterplan, new mixed-use housing delivers 567 affordable and private homes with community spaces and age-friendly facilities integrated at ground level.
The architectural language across the masterplan reflects Basildon’s heritage while responding to the town’s current needs. Building heights are capped at twelve stories, stepping down around St Martin’s Square and the Millenium Bell Tower to protect local views. Residential buildings adopt a more subtle palette of brick and metal, with variations defining individual plots while maintaining a cohesive townscape. Active frontages at street level accommodate shops, cafes and community spaces, animating streets and creating a social, inclusive town centre and diversifying the offer of ‘doorstep’ activities for residents and visitors alike.
The masterplan is structured across five phases over a 5.4-hectare site. Commencing in 2026, phase one will establish a new gateway from the station with a hotel, Extra Care homes and a rooftop bar overlooking St Martin’s Square. Subsequent phases will deliver the new landmark cultural venue, civic hub, new housing with embedded community facilities, underpinned by extensive improvements throughout to the existing public realm.