Decision details

The Cabinet will be asked to agree the freehold sale of Welbeck Wharf, 8 River Road, Barking, to Hackman Capital Partners, who currently lease the site from the Council as part of the Eastbrook Studios film and television studio project in the Borough.

Further to Minutes 67 (11 December 2018), 35(v) (20 October 2020) and 37 (21 September 2021), the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Core Services presented a report on a proposal to dispose of the former Welbeck Steel site, 8 River Road, Barking, to Hackman Studios.

The Cabinet Member advised that the site had been purchased by the Council in 2019 and was currently leased to Eastbrook Studios, a subsidiary of Hackman Studios, under an initial 10-year arrangement as part of the major film studio development project taking place in the Borough.  To support the company’s plans to invest in the site for film production and secure a long-term tenant, Hackman Studios had approached the Council regarding the purchase of the site.

The Cabinet Member alluded to the various conditions that would be included in the sale contract to protect the Council’s interests, the wider benefits for the Borough and the immediate River Road / Thames Road area and synergies with the Council’s draft Local Plan and the Mayor’s London Plan.  A sale would also provide the Council with a capital receipt significantly higher than the purchase price paid by the Council in 2019, which could be used to support other projects within the Council’s Investment and Acquisition Strategy.  The report also referred to proposed arrangements for determining the fee payable to Be First for its efforts in securing such a positive outcome for the Council.

Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Approve the disposal of the former Welbeck Steel site, shown edged red in Appendix 1 to the report, to Hackman Studios, in accordance with the Heads of Terms set out in Appendix 2 to the report;

(ii)  Authorise the Strategic Director, Finance and Investment, in consultation with the Chief Legal Officer, to enter into all necessary documents to finalise the transaction; and

(iii)  Delegate authority to the Strategic Director, Finance and Investment, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Core Services, to approve a fee payment to Be First to project manage the proposed disposal.