BELGROVE HOUSE
Panel Discussion | 14:45 – 15:25 | Auditorium 1
MAIN THEMES
Innovation | Sustainability | Place
The Session
Directly opposite King’s Cross Station sits Belgrove House, the site of the future UK headquarters and Discovery Centre for global healthcare company MSD. The plans for the building include specialised laboratory and office spaces designed for cutting-edge research, collaboration spaces connecting Knowledge Quarter institutions in the life sciences, and a mix of public spaces for the local community.
In this session, the lead partners involved in the development, discuss the ways in which heritage and sustainability have been incorporated into the design, the significance of an MSD Discovery Centre to the Knowledge Quarter, and the approach the healthcare company plans to take to be a good neighbour in the local community.
The Speakers
DR JILL RICHARDSON, Executive Director, Head of Biology, MSD UK
Jill has an outstanding track record of contribution to neuroscience research and drug discovery within the Pharmaceutical Industry having spent 23 years at GlaxoSmithKline before joining MSD in 2018, where she leads a highly talented group of scientists with a breadth of leading molecular/cell biology skill sets, based at the London Bioscience Innovation Centre (LBIC). She has collaborated extensively with academic groups and has contributed to delivery of scientific findings that have challenged previous concepts. With over 130 peer-reviewed publications, she is internationally recognised for her broad expertise in neuroscience research and drug discovery and has made important contributions to neurological diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, pain and epilepsy during her career in the pharmaceutical industry.
She obtained both her degree in biochemistry and PhD in Developmental Biology from the University of Warwick before taking up a Fogarty Post-Doctoral Award at the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, U.S.
She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology and has a Visiting Professorship at Imperial College London. She serves on several national and international Advisory Boards including the Wellcome Trust, MRC DRI Quinquennial panel and ARUK DDI Review Panel.
FAAIZA LALJI, Director of Planning and Development, Precis Advisory
Faaiza oversees a new residential-led mixed-use build-to-rent portfolio in outer London representing 2,500 homes and 1 million square feet of workspace and storage. She also leads on the company’s life sciences projects, the flagship of which is located in the heart of the King’s Cross Knowledge Quarter, and will be MSD’s UK HQ and Discovery Centre.
Faaiza sits on the Harvard Alumni Real Estate Board, New London Architecture’s Expert Panel on Innovation Districts, the Urban Land Institute’s European Life Sciences and UK Residential Councils, the British Property Foundation’s Residential Build to Rent Committee, and the Young Camden Foundation Trustee Board.
STEVE SMITH, Associate Director, AHMM Architects
Steve studied at the Manchester School of Architecture before working in Montreal, Canada for several years and then joining AHMM in 2005. Steve was Project Architect on the Angel Building and worked on Sunshine House, Notting Dale Village (White Building) and Horseferry House. He has also had a lead role in projects for Google including the company’s HQ in Berlin. He has most recently been leading the team on Belgrove House, a major new office building facing King’s Cross station that will include two floors of research and office space for medtech use. Steve has been a third year design tutor at the Birmingham School of Architecture and acts as a mentor for colleagues working towards their RIBA Part 3 qualifications. He was made an Associate in 2010 and promoted to Associate Director in 2021.
ALEX NEAL, Partner, Gerald Eve
Alex is a Partner in Gerald Eve’s Planning and Development team. He specialises in complex, large-scale development and regeneration projects in central London advising developers, landowners and institutional investors on town planning matters. He is a member of the Camden Working Group and Knowledge Quarter Liaison Group. As well as Belgrove House he has worked on major development projects in the Knowledge Quarter including the Former National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital for Groveworld and St Pancras Commercial Centre for W.RE.
The Organisations
