Common questions about the proposed development at West Smithfield

Farringdon Street (West Smithfield) Proposed Development

Is the ancient Smithfield Market under threat and is the meat market going to close?

No - there are no plans to change the Smithfield Meat Market opposite St Bart's Hospital.

The Smithfield Market buildings - West Market, East Market and Poultry Market – will continue to operate as a commercial meat market. The Grade II listed West and East Market buildings are fine examples of Victorian architecture and in 1992 the City of London Corporation spent £80 million refurbishing them. There are no plans to demolish or redevelop them and the Smithfield Market will continue to operate there.
Are any buildings in the Smithfield area being redeveloped?

An application to redevelop an area to the west of Smithfield, on the corner of Farringdon Street, is subject to a planning inquiry that is due to begin on 6 November 2007.

The proposed area for development includes the old General Market and the Annex Building, both of which are not listed. This is not an oversight. English Heritage has considered listing them four times since 1990 and each time has recommended that the buildings should not be listed. During the war they were bombed and suffered significant damage. Extensive repairs carried out in the 1950s were unsympathetic to the original buildings.

Apart from a small number of meat retail and catering units around the perimeter, along Farringdon Street and Charterhouse Street, the old General Market building has been largely vacant and unused for 15 years, due to its poor structural condition and safety concerns regarding the load bearing capacity of the ground floor structure.

The proposed development site is an integral location for two major transport projects – Thameslink and Crossrail.

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