Liberty Shopping Centre
Encyclopedia
The Liberty, is a covered shopping mall located in the London Borough of Havering
. It is the largest mall in Romford
, a metropolitan centre of Outer London
. It was originally built in 1968 as the Liberty Shopping Centre and underwent a four-year redevelopment completed in 2004. The centre takes its name from the former Liberty of Havering
and is owned by the Cosgrave Group. It is the largest indoor shopping mall in the borough and covers 730000 sqm with 36400 sqm of retail space, around 100 shops. The Liberty has an annual footfall of 23 million, equating to 425,000 people per week. It is linked to Mercury Shopping Centre (formerly Liberty 2) by an underpass.
The Liberty has been used as a filming location; for instance, it was featured in the Reebok
"Belly's gonna getcha!" television advertisement.
, and the development of a new car parking facility, plus new large stores for Next and H&M
. Several existing stores were remodelled or relocated, or received other modernisations, as part of the redesign, including Boots
, BHS and W H Smith
.
Once the planning application had been granted for the transformation of the centre, work started in August 2001. In April 2003, the centre achieved practical completion.
, Debenhams
, H&M
, Marks & Spencer
, Next, W H Smith
and Primark
. There was also formerly a Littlewoods
store in the centre, but this closed following Primark
's purchase of the Littlewoods store estate, as Primark already operated an existing store nearby.
and is on the route of a number of London Buses
services. There are 806 secure parking spaces.
London Borough of Havering
The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large...
. It is the largest mall in Romford
Romford
Romford is a large suburban town in north east London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan...
, a metropolitan centre of Outer London
Outer London
Outer London is the name for the group of London Boroughs that form a ring around Inner London.These were areas that were not part of the County of London and became formally part of Greater London in 1965...
. It was originally built in 1968 as the Liberty Shopping Centre and underwent a four-year redevelopment completed in 2004. The centre takes its name from the former Liberty of Havering
Royal Liberty of Havering
Havering, also known as Havering-atte-Bower, was a royal manor and ancient liberty whose former area now forms part of, and gives its name to, the London Borough of Havering in Greater London...
and is owned by the Cosgrave Group. It is the largest indoor shopping mall in the borough and covers 730000 sqm with 36400 sqm of retail space, around 100 shops. The Liberty has an annual footfall of 23 million, equating to 425,000 people per week. It is linked to Mercury Shopping Centre (formerly Liberty 2) by an underpass.
History
The Liberty was first built in 1968. In 1999 Hammerson acquired Standards Life's 50% interest and in 2000 acquired the freehold on the land. In September 2006, Irish property developers, The Cosgrave Group acquired the centre from Hammerson.The Liberty has been used as a filming location; for instance, it was featured in the Reebok
Reebok
Reebok International Limited, a subsidiary of the German sportswear company Adidas since 2005, is a producer of Athletic shoes, apparel, and accessories. The name comes from the Afrikaans spelling of rhebok, a type of African antelope or gazelle...
"Belly's gonna getcha!" television advertisement.
2001-2004 redevelopment
The centre underwent an extensive redevelopment at the turn of the millennium. Previously, the main part of the centre was open-air, with several covered arcades running off from it linking it to other parts of the town centre. The changes undertaken in the 2000s included the covering of the main part of the centre with a glazed roofRoof
A roof is the covering on the uppermost part of a building. A roof protects the building and its contents from the effects of weather. Structures that require roofs range from a letter box to a cathedral or stadium, dwellings being the most numerous....
, and the development of a new car parking facility, plus new large stores for Next and H&M
H&M
H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB is a Swedish retail-clothing company, known for its fast-fashion clothing offerings for women, men, teenagers and children....
. Several existing stores were remodelled or relocated, or received other modernisations, as part of the redesign, including Boots
Alliance Boots
Alliance Boots GmbH is a leading international, pharmacy-led health and beauty group. It has two core business activities - pharmacy-led health and beauty retailing, and pharmaceutical wholesaling and distribution - and has a presence in more than 25 countries...
, BHS and W H Smith
W H Smith
WHSmith plc is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It is best known for its chain of high street, railway station, airport, hospital and motorway service station shops selling books, stationery, magazines, newspapers, and entertainment products...
.
Once the planning application had been granted for the transformation of the centre, work started in August 2001. In April 2003, the centre achieved practical completion.
Tenants
The Liberty is anchored by BHS, BootsAlliance Boots
Alliance Boots GmbH is a leading international, pharmacy-led health and beauty group. It has two core business activities - pharmacy-led health and beauty retailing, and pharmaceutical wholesaling and distribution - and has a presence in more than 25 countries...
, Debenhams
Debenhams
Debenhams plc is a British retailer operating under a department store format in the UK, Ireland and Denmark, and franchise stores in other countries. The Company was founded in the eighteenth century as a single store in London and has now grown to around 160 shops...
, H&M
H&M
H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB is a Swedish retail-clothing company, known for its fast-fashion clothing offerings for women, men, teenagers and children....
, Marks & Spencer
Marks & Spencer
Marks and Spencer plc is a British retailer headquartered in the City of Westminster, London, with over 700 stores in the United Kingdom and over 300 stores spread across more than 40 countries. It specialises in the selling of clothing and luxury food products...
, Next, W H Smith
W H Smith
WHSmith plc is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It is best known for its chain of high street, railway station, airport, hospital and motorway service station shops selling books, stationery, magazines, newspapers, and entertainment products...
and Primark
Primark
Primark is a clothing retailer, operating over 223 stores in Ireland , the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Portugal and Belgium...
. There was also formerly a Littlewoods
Littlewoods
Littlewoods is the name of a former retail and gambling company founded in Liverpool, Merseyside, England by John Moores in 1923.It started as a shopping catalogue company, processing orders by post in the early 1970s. In 1981, it expanded to a call centre, processing orders via telephone. At its...
store in the centre, but this closed following Primark
Primark
Primark is a clothing retailer, operating over 223 stores in Ireland , the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Portugal and Belgium...
's purchase of the Littlewoods store estate, as Primark already operated an existing store nearby.
Accessibility
The Liberty is near to Romford railway stationRomford railway station
Romford station is located in Romford, London Borough of Havering. It is situated between Chadwell Heath and Gidea Park. It is the western terminus of the Upminster branch line from Upminster....
and is on the route of a number of London Buses
London Buses
London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London that manages bus services within Greater London, UK. Buses are required to carry similar red colour schemes and conform to the same fare scheme...
services. There are 806 secure parking spaces.