Birmingham City Council has approved proposals to regenerate a 17ha swathe of the historically industrial Digbeth area with 1,850 new homes, 200,000 sq m of commercial space, and new shops, restaurants and leisure facilities.

Centred around the Custard Factory creative hub – once the home of Bird’s Custard – in the city-fringe district, developer Oval Real Estate’s plans also include turning a Victorian railway viaduct into a high-level park and opening up a previously-hidden stretch of the River Rea.

Architect Studio Egret West worked with Birmingham-based practices Glenn Howells Architects and Bryant Priest Newman Architects on the proposals for Oval, which acquired the Custard Factory and neighbouring buildings in 2017.

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