In a highly unusual situation, the public is faced with not one but two live and competing planning applications for the major redevelopment of Liverpool Street Station, writes Marie Clements of the Victorian Society.
The Liverpool Street Station Campaign (LISSCA) [of which Civic Voice is a member] was re-established to save Liverpool Street Station from inappropriate development, and to ensure that any redevelopment and upgrade proposals are sympathetic and proportionate.
The LISSCA Committee, chaired by The Victorian Society and incorporating five of the national amenity societies, is now calling on the public to object to Network Rail and ACME’s recently validated planning application by the 4 July 2025.
While Network Rail asserts that its latest scheme, developed with architects ACME, is the only means of delivering required station upgrades, simultaneously, the national amenity societies are also being consulted by Sellar and Herzog & de Meuron on a revision of its original 2023 application, which initially attracted over 2,000 objections from the public. That application remains live on the City of London’s planning portal, and the revisions, it is claimed, will render that scheme far less harmful.
The situation is confusing and highly unusual. It is also likely to put extra stressors, including costs, on the City of London’s planning department and its staff.
LISSCA is not opposed to the principle of functional and accessibility upgrades to the station. However, it strongly opposes Network Rail’s latest scheme, which would cause substantial harm to the historic station and its setting, and to the surrounding Conservation Area. This is not the best way of achieving necessary improvements to ensure the ongoing operational capability of the station.
Full details – from the Victorian Society