Plans revealed for 462-home Middlehaven neighbourhood with ‘UK-first’ ambition
Middlesbrough could do with some positive news, and now Capital&Centric has released more details about phase one of its 2,000-home neighbourhood on brownfield sites surrounding the Old Town Hall.
Working alongside Middlesbrough Council, the developer has also been working with international architecture practice MVRDV and shedkm on the emerging proposals.
Newly released details show that phase one – backed by £3.6m of the council’s Towns Fund allocation – would deliver 462 homes, comprising houses and low-rise BTR apartments, alongside shared gardens, play streets, green pedestrian routes, and community spaces.
Capital&Centric said the proposals form part of a wider ambition to create a walkable neighbourhood bringing homes together with education, sport, and employment opportunities.
Middlehaven is already home to schools and further education facilities, major sporting venues, and a cluster of digital, technology, and creative businesses. The developer said the introduction of new homes, alongside potential café bars and restaurants, could complete the mix and create a neighbourhood where residents can live, learn, work, and access leisure facilities within the same area.
Residents are now being invited to help shape emerging proposals for the largely underused land at Middlehaven.
Following the consultation, Capital&Centric and Middlesbrough Council will review the feedback and continue developing the proposals ahead of a potential planning application later this year.
A public drop-in consultation will take place on Thursday 10 September 2026, 4pm–7pm, at TigerIvy on Albert Road, Middlesbrough.
Capital&Centric was named as the council’s development partner on the project in November last year, tasked with creating a neighbourhood around the Old Town Hall, which is currently undergoing its own £6.3m restoration project spearheaded by Group Ginger.
Contractor Walter Thompson will redevelop the landmark grade two-listed building into office space within the town’s Boho Zone, with the space designed for digital start-ups, complementing the town’s tech-driven reputation, which includes the 60,000 sq ft Boho X workspace developed with £21m in backing from the Tees Valley Combined Authority and fully occupied by games developer Double Eleven.
Dan White, development director at Capital&Centric, said: “Middlehaven has something pretty special already. You’ve got schools and a college, brilliant sports facilities, and a growing community of digital, tech and creative businesses – all within walking distance of each other.
“What’s been missing is the hundreds of homes that knits everything up for residents and visitors. Our ambition is to bring all of that together and create something we don’t think exists anywhere else in the UK: a proper neighbourhood where you can live, learn, work, and play, all in one place.
“Imagine growing up here, going to school here, moving on to college, training or playing sport, learning the skills for a career, getting a job with a digital business next door and eventually having your own home here. From classroom to career without leaving the neighbourhood.
“That’s the opportunity at Middlehaven. Its means so much more than putting a few hundred homes on empty sites. We’re connecting everything that’s already here and creating a community around it. But we’re still at an early stage. We want people in Middlesbrough to come down, see what we’re thinking and tell us what they love, what they don’t and what would make it even better.”
Cllr Theo Furness, Middlesbrough Council’s executive member for economic development, said: “The plans for Middlehaven are hugely exciting. Building thousands of attractive new homes is key to our vision for the town centre.
“The area has a proud past and I know it means a great deal to many people. It’s really important that people give us their views on this big opportunity for Middlesbrough.”
