We’re delighted that John Lewis Partnership has been awarded a resolution to grant consent from Reading Borough Council to deliver 170 rental homes on a former industrial site at Mill Lane, which previously housed a distribution centre. The unanimous decision taken last week by the council’s planning committee praised the Partnership’s local engagement around the project and its 70 year commitment to Reading.
Sharing the outcome on LinkedIn, Katherine Russell, Director of Build-To-Rent for John Lewis Partnership, praised Milligan’s David Rothwell saying “the real credit must go to David, whose leadership, energy and passion steered this scheme through every twist and turn in the design process alongside our architects Carey Jones Chapman Tolcher (CJCT). David’s outstanding stakeholder engagement was specifically recognised by officers calling it “exceptional”.
In the official press release Katherine also went onto say: “We’re delighted with the unanimous decision. This planning consent marks an important moment in our 70-year commitment to Reading and has been achieved through close collaboration with the Local Authority. We’re pleased to have the opportunity to invest further in the community by helping to deliver much-needed new homes. “Our ambition is to take the reputation we have built for service and trust into housing, ensuring residents feel the same quality and care that has defined our brand for generations.”
Around one in six (16%) of the 170 homes will be affordable, with no difference in design, specification or service compared with market-rate homes. Local residents will be given first refusal on the mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments. Each one will be powered using an air source heat pump.
The £70m scheme will regenerate an underused brownfield site to deliver high-quality, energy-efficient homes, nearly 5,000 sq ft of indoor amenity space for fitness, homeworking and socialising, and landscaped communal gardens. A new community space and access to gardens for local groups will also be provided. The scheme will deliver a biodiversity net gain of 328%, far exceeding the statutory 10% requirement required by policy.
The project is expected to generate £18m in additional household spending and Council Tax over the next decade, supporting local shops, cafés and services. It will also create more than 120 jobs during construction, including apprenticeships.
The Reading decision follows landmark approvals in West Ealing and Bromley that together unlock almost 1,000 new rental homes. Alongside these planning milestones, JLP has built an operational track record managing nearly 1,000 homes for its joint venture partner, Aberdeen.
Drawing on its 150-year retail heritage, the Partnership has embedded a customer-first service DNA into its rental business, with training and data-led insights already improving performance across other sites. This approach has reinforced the quality and trust attached to the John Lewis brand while creating a platform to assess further brownfield opportunities across its estate.
Anne Breen, Global Head of Real Estate at Aberdeen, added: “John Lewis brings something quite different to build-to-rent – centrally located, money-can’t-buy sites and a brand people know and trust, and a stand-out commitment to service that is already evident across the homes they manage.
“Reading is another important step in growing a platform that fosters genuine social value by building communities that foster connection, pride, and wellbeing. Build to Rent, done well, could go a long way to transform the UK’s private rental stock, much of which is aging, to become places people truly want to live and call home.”
