Old Hampstead police station sold by Department for Education at £4m loss
The former police station in Rosslyn Hill - Credit: Archant
The new owner of the old Hampstead police station says the Grade-II listed building will become offices or homes – or a mixture of the two.
Development firm Redington Capital, based in South Hampstead, says it has bought the site in Rosslyn Hill for around £10m, with the deal set to complete next month.
The Department for Education purchased the building for £14.1m from the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) in 2013.
Abacus Belsize Primary School twice tried and failed to make it its home, with Camden Council and then a planning inspector rejecting its efforts last year.
James Frost, the CEO of Redington Capital, said the “path of least resistance” would guide its decision on what form the building would take – but that as things stand, he was “more looking towards high-quality offices”.
The Hampstead resident told the Ham&High: “We're not going to be extending it [the building].
“We're not going to be doing anything contentious, far from it. We just want to work with the local authority.
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“I own other properties in Hampstead very close by so I just want to restore it back to its former glory. It’s a beautiful building.”
A planning application is expected in the next 12 months. James said the former station house would be split off and sold as a home, and that the coach house would be sold and turned into more homes or offices.
The CEO said there would be “absolutely no changes whatsoever in the fabric of the building”.
The old police station was vandalised at a Halloween rave last year - Credit: Jill Furmanovsky
Some Hampstead residents have called for part of the building to be used as a community space.
James said he would have to discuss it with Camden Council but that he “wasn’t ruling out anything at the moment”.
Hampstead Town councillor Oliver Cooper said: “Camden must be hard-nosed in securing the most benefits for the local community from this development. Residents want community space provided right here or very nearby."
Alex Nicoll, vice chair of the Hampstead Neighbourhood Forum, said the proposal “seems likely to be a positive development”.
“If the primary use of the old police station is to be offices, this should benefit the local economy while not disturbing the amenity of neighbours,” he said.
The site in Rosslyn Hill still houses police cells and the former Hampstead magistrates’ court.
The Department for Education declined to comment.
