Canterbury Works: Frequently asked questions

Site location and context

Where is the Canterbury Works site?

The Canterbury Works site is located in South Kilburn, behind Canterbury Road and Canterbury Terrace and next to the existing railway tracks.

The site sits within residential areas to the west and south and St Mary’s Catholic Primary School to the east.

What are we building at the Canterbury Works site?

We are building a ventilation (vent) shaft and headhouse at the Canterbury Works site, which will connect to the HS2 tunnels below ground.

Vent shafts and headhouses are an essential part of building a new railway in a tunnel.

What is a ventilation shaft?

A vent shaft is a vertical opening that connects the tunnels to the surface and open air. It uses fans located in a fan house to regulate air quality and temperature in the tunnels, provides access for emergency services and allows smoke to be extracted in the event of a fire.

What is a headhouse?

The headhouse is the building on top of the vent shaft. It contains the fire control and ventilation systems for the railway tunnels below. The headhouse will include the fan room.

What works have already taken place at the Canterbury Works site?

Works to set up our Canterbury Works site began in summer 2021. Since then, the following works have taken place:

• Construction of new site entrance on Albert Road including a new access ramp
• Utility diversion works and sewer lining
• Works to build the vent shaft, including excavations, sprayed concrete lining and waterproofing
• Construction of base slab within vent shaft
• Installation of internal shaft structures (walls/floors/stairs)
• Works to build adits (horizontal passages below ground) that will connect the HS2 tunnels
• Installation of shaft attenuation tank (a storage system for rainwater and surface water)

Works at the Canterbury Works Ventilation Shaft and Headhouse site was brought to a ‘safe stop’ in September 2024. This was in line with the government announcement in March 2023 on the pause in work building the HS2 station at Euston.

Upcoming works at the Canterbury Works site

What works will be taking place at the Canterbury Works site?

Works at the Canterbury Works Ventilation Shaft and Headhouse site was brought to a ‘safe stop’ in September 2024. As part of an ongoing review of the programme by HS2, we do not now expect works to resume in 2025.

Until mid-July 2026, the welfare facilities at the Canterbury Works site will be used during core hours by our staff. Waste material will also be stored on site to support utilities works in South Hampstead.

For more information on these works, please visit: Update: utility works in South Hampstead, Phase 1 – HS2.

The hoarding will remain in place, and there will be 24-hour security. No construction activities relating to the ventilation shaft and headhouse will be taking place on site during this time. However, you may notice staff and vehicles on site.

We may carry out vegetation trimming surrounding our Canterbury Works site during some periods. This work is necessary to ensure clear visibility to our small monitoring equipment which are placed in various locations to support our works. No trees will be removed, only low-level vegetation. We will provide updates to the community in advance of this.

What will I be able to see on your site?

You will be able to see our site office and welfare facilities within the site hoarding from Canterbury Road, Canterbury Terrace and Brondesbury Villas, as well as from some high-rise buildings nearby.

Other questions

Can you reduce the brightness of the lighting in your site?

We need lighting for the security team to safely carry out their tasks (including security patrols) overnight. The flood lights have been lowered and are down-facing to reduce the level of brightness coming from our site. We have also reduced the number of lighting towers being used overnight. We understand the local community’s concerns about lighting and are continuously reviewing the lighting within our site overnight to minimise disruption.

Why are hoarding lights required?

The lighting on the Canterbury Works site hoardings is required to ensure the hoarding is clearly visible to road users for their safety and to make sure we have a safe construction site. The hoarding lighting must follow regulations in accordance with British Standards and other legal health and safety requirements related to site management. Hoarding lights have been agreed with Brent Council.

Will affected residents be eligible for noise insulation in their properties?

We do not expect our works to trigger any of the noise levels defined within the E23: Control of Construction Noise and Vibration paper.

We recognise that there may be circumstances in which residents are more sensitive to construction noise, or their properties may not qualify for noise insulation. In such circumstances, specific noise trigger levels and/or alternative noise control measures will be considered on a case-by-case basis to protect residents. You can view more information at Noise_insulation_scheme_booklet_CS1008a.pdf or by contacting the HS2 Helpdesk on 08081 434 434 or email [email protected].

I would like to sell my property, what support do you offer?

HS2 have a ‘need to sell scheme’ available to residents who need to sell their property but cannot because of HS2. Further information about scheme is available at Need to Sell – HS2 or by contacting the HS2 Helpdesk on 08081 434 434 or email [email protected].

Canterbury Works headhouse and compound design

What will the Canterbury Works headhouse look like?

The materials proposed in our current scheme design for the Canterbury Works headhouse are timber, steel, concrete and blockwork. We are also planning to install green roofs.

We are planning to use similar materials at all head houses between Euston and West Ruislip, but the combination of materials will vary depending on the area.

For further information on the design and to view the visualisations of the headhouse, please see the Canterbury Works headhouse and compound design update.

What will the future lighting plans be like?

We will be illuminating various zones throughout the site with a mixture of lighting fixtures. When the site is unoccupied, a dimming factor will be applied to all lights to minimise lighting pollution. However, the lighting levels will increase in the following scenarios:

• emergencies, when switched on locally/remotely
• when vehicles are manoeuvring
• upon gate opening
• when intrusion is detected by the CCTV security system

For further information on the future lighting plans, please see the Canterbury Works headhouse and compound design update.

What are the future landscape plans?

Our future landscaping plan for the Canterbury Works site considers local ecological and the vegetation requirements for next to a live railway. Our current future landscape design includes block / slab paving and woodland, scrub and grassland habitat planting. We’re also planning to install a green roof on the headhouse buildings.

For further information on the future landscape plans, please see the Canterbury Works headhouse and compound design update.

What engagement has taken place on the design of the Canterbury Works headhouse and compound?

Throughout summer and winter 2018, we showed you our scheme design for the Canterbury Works headhouse and compound. Following this, we showed you our detailed design for the Canterbury Works headhouse and compound in November 2020. During these consultations, residents and the community were encouraged to provide further feedback on the appearance and landscape of the headhouse and compound before we submitted our final design to Brent Council.

After consulting the local community on the designs of the future Canterbury Works Headhouse, we reduced the size of the vertical ventilation stacks to the minimum required dimensions and height. We also reduced the size of the chimneys.

In addition, we reviewed our landscaping plans to maximise the height of the tree screening between the headhouse and residential buildings on Canterbury Terrace and Canterbury House. We will plant trees in a zig zag formation to provide greater coverage between the residential and headhouse buildings. The green roofs have been adapted to maximise the aesthetic visual impact for residents in Canterbury Terrace and Carlton House.

For further information on this engagement, please see the Canterbury Works headhouse and compound design update.

Planned engagement activity

Notifications about works and events in your area

As part of our commitment to keeping you informed, we will continue to send notifications about our works and events in your area throughout 2025. You can find our latest updates here: In your area map – High Speed 2 (hs2.org.uk).

Monthly virtual drop-ins

You can book a 20-minute slot between 4pm to 6pm to speak with the community engagement team from HS2 and SCSJV on the third Wednesday of every month.

To register your attendance for one of our virtual drop-ins, please visit HS2.org.uk/events.