Bradford City Village:
At Home In The Heart of the City
We’re developing a vision for a sustainable new residential neighbourhood in Bradford city centre.
Introducing City Village
Bradford Council, in partnership with ECF (formerly the English Cities Fund), is developing plans to unlock the potential of what was the former retail and trading heart of Bradford city centre.
City Village will involve the delivery of up to 1,000 homes in the ‘Top of Town’ and Darley Street areas.
We first shared our early-stage ideas during a phase of visioning engagement with the local community and businesses in Winter 2022/23. We carefully considered the feedback received to help inform the evolving masterplan, which we provided an update on in Summer 2024. Since then, we’ve continued to refine the plans.
We are now introducing detailed plans for the first phase of the project and are once again inviting community feedback before submitting a planning application later this year.
CGI of Oastler townhouses (Phase 1)
About
The City Village regeneration area covers approximately 25 hectares of the city centre. It includes the “Top of Town” and Darley Street areas, to the north of Centenary Square and to the west of Bradford Forster Square station.
Three development sites, all of which are owned by the Council, will form the initial phases of City Village: the Kirkgate site, the Oastler site and land at Chain Street.
Chain Street
Oastler Centre
Kirkgate Centre
Aerial view of the City Village regeneration area site showing the three key sites
Who’s behind City Village?
Bradford City Village is being delivered by Bradford Council and English Cities Fund (ECF), a development company that brings together the combined expertise and ambition of Homes England, investors Legal & General, and national place-maker Muse.
We have also recently agreed a partnership with Incommunities, who will fund and manage the townhouses being delivered as part of Phase 1.
To help deliver the scheme and continue the transformation of Bradford city centre, West Yorkshire Mayor, Tracy Brabin, has committed £13.2 million of investment, building on the Government’s earlier £30 million funding pledge to support the delivery of City Village.
The bigger picture
The vision for City Village is to create a green, healthy, sustainable and community-friendly city centre neighbourhood.
The role of town and city centres everywhere is changing. While the success of The Broadway shows the continued strength of retail in Bradford, the sector no longer plays the dominant role that it used to. City Village looks to respond to these new challenges and opportunities by balancing retail against other uses, which will bring more people into the city centre.
As Bradford grows into a more vibrant, liveable city, there's a significant opportunity to introduce the kind of city centre living already thriving elsewhere.
City Village provides an opportunity to deliver up to 1,000 new homes in an accessible, city centre location with great links to the surrounding city centre and public transport.
By making the city centre a place where more people can live – not just visit – we can create a stronger, more welcoming, and sustainable future for Bradford.
Precedent images illustrating the potential range of new homes that could be delivered.
While housing is at the heart of this vision, City Village will also boost new opportunities for revitalised independent retail, cafes, bars and new business spaces.
Safer roads, landscaped public spaces and quality urban design will help make City Village a place where people will choose to live, work and thrive and where businesses will want to invest, trade and grow.
Throughout December 2023 and January 2024, we began a conversation with the local community around our early-stage 2023 vision for Bradford City Village and asked for feedback to help shape the plans going forward.
During this period of engagement we received feedback from over 400 people across Bradford.
In response to the feedback we received during our visioning engagement, we developed a set of principles that are guiding plans for Bradford City Village.
Principle 1: A ‘green’ city centre neighbourhood
Principle 2: High-quality, sustainable new homes
Principle 3: A range of community amenities
Principle 4: Creating a sustainable community for the future
Principle 5: Respecting heritage
Continuing the conversation
To view a summary of our initial phase of visioning engagement, please click on the button below.
Our approach
For more detailed information about our plans, including the future phases of development planned for the Kirkgate and Oastler South sites, please click here:
Bradford City Village will be delivered in phases over a number of years.
The first phase will focus on the Chain Street site and the northern part of the Oastler Centre site (the areas highlighted in yellow). Later phases will include the Kirkgate Centre area and the southern half of the Oastler site (the areas highlighted in red).
Phase 1 in focus – Chain Street
The plans for the Chain Street site aim to deliver high-quality, low density family housing.
The development will consist of modern townhouses arranged around a new community green – a shared open space designed to encourage outdoor activity, social interaction, and a strong sense of local identity.
In total, the site will provide 33 new townhouses in a mix of two- and three-bedroom homes to suit a variety of household sizes and needs. Ranging from two to three storeys in height, the homes have been designed with sustainability in mind to ensure long-term energy efficiency, lower running costs, and comfortable year-round living.
Phase 1 in focus – Oastler North
Our vision for the Oastler site focuses on creating a vibrant, family-friendly neighbourhood with a mix of low and medium density housing.
The development will feature both townhouses and apartments arranged around a series of outdoor squares, courtyards, and green spaces to encourage social interaction and a strong sense of community.
As part of the first phase of development, we are proposing to deliver 64 townhouses in mix of two- and three-bedroom properties. These homes will range from two to three storeys in height, providing flexible, modern living options for families and contributing to a varied and attractive streetscape.
Next steps
This community conversation will be open from Wednesday 21 May to Wednesday 18 June 2025.
The deadline to submit feedback on our detailed plans for Phase 1 is Wednesday 18 June 2025. This is the final phase of consultation on our Phase 1 plans, so please do tell us what you think.
To complete our feedback form, please click here:
Come along and meet the team
During the engagement period, we are holding three public drop-in events. These will be an opportunity to find out more about the plans, view our 3D model, talk to members of our team, and tell us your views. You’ll find us at the former Samsung unit at the Kirkgate Centre (on the corner of Darley Street and Kirkgate) at the following times:
Thursday 29 May 2025, 11am to 4pm
Saturday 31 May 2025, 11am to 4pm
Wednesday 4 June 2025, 3pm to 6:30pm
If you’re unable to attend the events, please don’t worry as all of the information that will be displayed is available to view by clicking the link below:
If you have any questions on our proposals or the consultation process, please feel free to get in touch with us via email: info@bradfordcityvillage.com
Once the consultation has closed, we will carefully consider all feedback received before submitting a hybrid planning application later in the year.