He said there could still be “an exciting and successful, profitable future for a renovated and redeveloped M&S building” on the site.

“This [decision] is great news for the built environment, but this is no time for a victory lap for the opponents to the demolition. That celebration should be saved for when policy makers, opponents and indeed the market collaborate to ensure M&S is empowered to deliver a world-class and profitable refurbishment that can then be a case study for a better future.”

“We need a new way forward, where development versus conservation need not be a zero-sum game. Navigating this journey now needs to be addressed with some urgency.”

“Retaining, reusing, and adapting existing buildings often involves much more risk and can be far more expensive than demolishing and building new. At Seaforth, like many developers, we are fiduciaries partnered with pensions and other institutions who need a reasonable risk-adjusted return to meet their own obligations. If we fail to deliver those returns, the capital will not return to the opportunity."

“If we want to encourage more developers to embrace the additional risk, we must find ways to mitigate risk or improve the returns. Conservation and policy makers can help support developers favouring conservation with accelerated approvals, increased density, reduced charges or indeed through helping to support and celebrate developments that are making a difference. The more we facilitate the success of responsible developers and developments, the more capital will rush in to fill the need and the more responsible developers we will create.”

Seaforth work exclusively to retrofit London properties, increasing their sustainability credentials and making the space fit for future generations. Our most recent success (20-23 Greville Street) turned a disused building into BREEAM "very good", EPC A rated, Grade A office space let by Julius Baer to become their new UK headquarters.

Our next exciting project: Space House, will see an icon of mid-century grade II listed architecture become world leading sustainable office and public space. Find out more about this project at www.spacehouse.london