Berkeley has paused the 495-home Brighton Gasworks scheme over rising costs. Gasholder demolition is still pencilled in for spring 2027; no date for the homes.
The 495-home Brighton Gasworks development has been paused while its developer reviews whether and how to go ahead. Berkeley Homes has blamed rising construction costs and a subdued housing market.
The pause was confirmed by Berkeley to Chris Ward, the MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, who had written to the company asking for an update. He published its reply on 2 October (Chris Ward MP).
What Berkeley has said
According to the MP’s account of Berkeley’s reply:
- the scheme is under review because of rising construction costs and subdued conditions in the housing market
- Berkeley is exploring “all available options” for the site
- the review is expected to finish by the end of 2026
- there is no confirmed date for construction of the homes to begin
- demolition of the former gasholders and initial remediation work is expected to begin in spring 2027
- that phase is expected to be completed during 2028
- Berkeley intends to set up a Community Liaison Group with local residents and the city council before work begins
Berkeley has not published a statement of its own on the pause. Its reply is reported here as the MP set it out.
The site and the permission
The site is the former gasworks bounded by Roedean Road, Marina Way and Boundary Road, just north of Brighton Marina and next to Marine Gate. The developer named on the planning appeal is St William Homes LLP, which the inspector’s report describes as part of the Berkeley Group.
The scheme has had a long road. The city council’s planning committee refused it on 22 May 2024, by seven votes to three, against its officers’ advice (Brighton & Hove City Council). St William appealed, and a public inquiry sat at Brighton Town Hall in March 2025.
The government then took the decision itself. Housing minister Matthew Pennycook granted planning permission on 22 September 2025, agreeing with the inspector’s recommendation (MHCLG decision letter, ref 3353409).
The approved scheme includes:
- 495 homes in nine buildings between three and 12 storeys high
- a terrace of 14 townhouses on Boundary Road
- 2,791 square metres of ground-floor commercial space, at least 2,000 of it for offices, research or light industry
- 179 car parking spaces and 642 cycle spaces
- new public space, play features and communal gardens
No affordable homes, unless the sums change
The approved scheme contains no guaranteed affordable housing. The council and the developer agreed that the site could not support any, because of the high cost of remediating the contaminated site. An independent review by the District Valuation Service, for the council, backed that conclusion.
Instead the developer signed a legal undertaking to use “reasonable endeavours” to find grant funding, with a review of viability later on. If the money or the market improves, the inquiry heard, the scheme could deliver up to 198 affordable homes: 109 for affordable rent and 89 for shared ownership. The minister gave that no weight in his decision, “given there is no guarantee that affordable housing would be provided”.
The permission carries a standard time limit. Development must start within three years of the decision, which means by 22 September 2028.
What the MP said
Mr Ward said residents near the site had been asking what was happening.
“We now know that the development itself is effectively paused while Berkeley reviews its options, and that review is expected to continue until the end of the year,” he said.
“There is still a great deal of uncertainty about what happens next, particularly as there is currently no confirmed date for construction of the homes to begin.”
He said he would keep pressing Berkeley on safeguards for dust, noise, traffic and the wider environmental impact of work on the site.
What it means for you
If you live around Marina Way, Roedean Road or Boundary Road, nothing changes on the ground this year. The gasholder frames stay up and no construction is scheduled.
The first work you are likely to see is demolition and clean-up, which Berkeley expects to start in spring 2027. That is the phase residents have worried about most, because of the contamination in the ground. The Community Liaison Group, once it exists, should be the place to raise dust, noise and lorry routes before it starts.
Whether 495 homes follow depends on Berkeley’s review. The council’s Brighton Gasworks page and the planning register, under reference BH2021/04167, are where any new application or change to the scheme will appear. Our guide to Brighton planning applications explains how to search the register and comment.
We will report the outcome of the review when Berkeley announces it.
Sources
- Chris Ward MP, Brighton Gasworks development paused as Chris Ward MP seeks answers for residents, 2 October 2026
- Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, recovered appeal decision letter and inspector’s report, ref APP/Q1445/W/24/3353409, 22 September 2025
- Brighton & Hove City Council, What’s happening now: Brighton Gasworks
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