Landlord Group welcomes new Chairman
Tim Haddon, Head of Asset Management at British Land, became Chairman of The Paddington Partnership in autumn 2021. As his responsibilities change at British Land we look back over his four years as Chairman, and welcome Arthur de Parcevaux as our new Chairman.
Using the Partnership’s Recovery Fund established following the pandemic to support hospitality venues, a series of activations were rolled out across 2021 and 2022 including a Paddington campaign with GWR, a canalside music series with 65 hours of live music and a new Eat, Drink, Paddington publication to encourage people back to Paddington and back to the office, with 30,000 copies delivered to local homes and businesses.
Improving Bishop's Bridge Road
Work to improve conditions for pedestrians and cyclists on Bishop’s Bridge Road established in April 2021 continued throughout the year, with 5th Studio undertaking extensive stakeholder engagement to devise a series of public realm improvement options. The final study was published in December 2021, and wider public consultation began in 2022.
See Paddington
Following an open call in March 2019 to improve The Bays Corridor (“Paddington Connections”), and the appointment of Steer and Jedco, installation took place in 2022 of a package of 19 public realm interventions to animate the canalside from North Wharf Road to Bishop’s Bridge Road. Known as See Paddington, the project used poetry to develop a narrative trail focusing on nature, heritage, personal connections and transport. Local stakeholders from 16 organisations, 30 members of the public and 30 pupils from St Mary Magdalene CE Primary School helped poets devise the content.
Arrival of the Elizabeth Line
The Elizabeth line opened in May 2022, with a brand new, award-winning station at Paddington, bringing 1.5 million more people within a 45-minute commute to central London and slashing journey times across the capital. We were treated to a preview before the opening of the central section.
Expanding our Community Programme
In January 2023 we expanded our community team in response to increasing interest from corporates to give back to the local community. In four years the community programme has seen over 7,900 people from 62 Paddington companies give their time to support 54 local schools and charities.
Next Steps for Bishop's Bridge Road
In March 2023 we published the results of our public consultation on proposals to improve Bishop’s Bridge Road. Over 450 people gave their views and 24 stakeholder groups participated in the consultation between July and December 2022. This paved the way for action by Westminster Council, Network Rail and TfL to trial the relocation of the National Express airport coaches from the bridge to Eastbourne Terrace in December 2023 followed by the permanent relocation in the summer of 2024.
Paddington Life Sciences Partners
June 2023 saw Paddington Life Sciences Partners (PLS) launched, with British Land, Brockton, Derwent London and The Paddington Partnership as founding members. Now standing at 17 members, PLS provides the launchpad for the rapidly expanding life sciences cluster at Paddington and includes Grand Union BID members Ipsen, Vertex, IQVIA, Takeda, Microsoft, Vodafone, Convatec, Optum and Imperial Health Charity.
Caring for the Grand Union Canal
The Partnership’s Directors took part in their own volunteering event in July 2023, participating in a canal clean-up. Every year over 500 volunteers take to the water with GoBoat, covering 150km of canal (the equivalent of Paddington to Northampton on the Grand Union Canal) to clear plastic and litter from the waterspace. Our most recent multi-company Earth Day event in April 2025 saw 231 colleagues representing 25 Paddington businesses participate in one of our biggest ever canal clean-ups.
Celebrating 25 Years
In October 2023 we celebrated 25 years of the Paddington Partnership with a journey through time and 250 of Paddington’s highlights. This important milestone marked the start of discussions to create the Grand Union BID, moving from a property owner and landlord-led partnership to one that embraced our commercial occupiers as part of longer-term strategic ambitions for Paddington’s legacy.
A step towards Grand Union BID
Consultation commenced in the summer of 2024 with businesses across Paddington on the proposition to create Grand Union BID. Over 100 meetings with companies were held between May 2024 and the ballot in May 2025, helping us to shape the offer by listening to business priorities.
Parapet panels replaced on Bishop's Bridge
Continuing our work to improve Bishop’s Bridge Road, the Partnership switched out 69 parapet panels in September 2024 to add a splash of colour and interest, telling the stories of railway heritage, the Grand Union Canal, Brunel’s forgotten bridge and the romance of travel. Neighbourhood Community Infrastructure Levy (NCIL) was used to fund the bulk of the installation, bringing the total NCIL secured to £288,000 for projects in Paddington.
Step-free access on the Bakerloo line
Our bespoke map is refreshed in September 2024 to coincide with the introduction of step-free access at Paddington. The online version of the map receives over 1,000 web views per month, to explore the area and find places to visit, socialise, relax and eat out.
Formation of Grand Union BID
Our formal proposal to establish Grand Union BID was submitted to Westminster Council in January 2025 and signed off by the Cabinet Member in February 2025.
The Grand Union BID ballot took place across May and June 2025, with 79% of votes in favour and a 72% turnout - well above the average for a BID ballot - laying the groundwork for the greatest concentration of social value activity in London.
The first Advisory Committee to oversee the BID took place in shadow form in May 2025 and helped shape the priorities for the BID’s initial activities, attended by representatives of 10 companies.
I’m incredibly proud to have led the Paddington Partnership for the last four years, working alongside some great people over that time. As a group we have come together and achieved some real results that have benefitted the wider Paddington area. In particular, our community programme has more than doubled in scale and reach, we have laid the important groundwork for a much improved Bishop’s Bridge Road, and have given the Partnership a new direction and financial security as it transfers into a new BID for the area.
BID hits the ground running
The BID went live on 13 June 2025 and hit the ground running with a multi-company volunteering day at QEII special school in August 2025, supporting the school over the holidays and repairing damage from a fire. We were delighted to be able to bring 59 volunteers from ten Paddington companies to lend a hand, including those volunteering with us for the first time. A big thank you to Capita, Convatec, Derwent London, FORA, Heathrow Express, IQVIA, Novotel London Paddington, Trend Micro, Virgin Media 02 and Vodafone.
All aboard the paddleboards
With the arrival of Paddleboarding London in Merchant Square, in June, Grand Union BID ran free stand up paddleboarding (SUP) taster sessions for our members on 24 July and 6 August, attended by 20 people from four BID member companies. Building on this new relationship, a Pick and Paddle canal clean-up then followed in September, with 10 people from eight companies taking part.
Paddington ESG Network Launches
ESG leads at companies across Paddington will come together for the first time this month for a deep dive into the community, building on the successful NHS community walks we established in 2023 with St Mary’s. Quarterly visits to charity premises and schools enable ESG leads to get closer to communities, hear from local leaders and see first hand the issues facing the people who live in the areas surrounding Paddington.
Care Leaver Programme Announced
Our first strategic programme under Grand Union BID was announced in October, with Novotel London at Paddington Central being the first BID member to host Westminster care leavers on a three-month employability and confidence-building journey into the hospitality industry.
Handing over the reins to Arthur
Our thanks go to Tim Haddon as he moves to oversee the Canada Water transformation on behalf of British Land. We welcome Arthur de Parcevaux from Tishman Speyer as our new Chairman to take us into the next chapter and lead the landlord group of Grand Union BID.
This is an exciting time to be taking over from Tim, and I thank him for passing the baton when the Partnership is in such a good place. We now start our journey as a BID, seeing commercial occupiers join forces with landlords to create one of London’s greatest concentrations of social value activity at Paddington.