Published 27 March 2026

Dido Properties’ development will see the creation of a new media campus at a 56-acre brownfield site in Buckinghamshire. Situated next to the A404 at Little Marlow, the former quarry and landfill site will now be transformed to deliver an 18-soundstage production campus.

Designed by architects Wilkinson Eyre, the scheme will see the construction of 280,000 sq ft of production offices, 472,000 sq ft of soundstages and 410,000 sq ft of workshops, together with substantial supporting infrastructure, transport and landscaping works.

Commenting on the decision in a recent statement, Robert Laycock, Marlow Studios CEO, said: "For Buckinghamshire, this is a powerful vote of confidence in the coming generations. Regenerating a poorly landfilled site to enable new careers and pass on exceptional skills in this world-beating British industry is the right decision. It’s a signal to investors who aim for high quality development, done in the right way, through outstanding design that brings sustainable opportunities and benefits to their community. The decision is clear in its assessment that Marlow Studios will attract global investment, help the UK maintain its competitive creative edge, and will strengthen the West London film cluster.”

The site lies on green belt land to the south of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Much of this site was previously used in the mid-20th Century for gravel extraction and the excavations were subsequently filled. There remain some residual areas that have the potential for mineral extraction across limited areas of the site. There are also a number of waterbodies within close proximity, including Westhorpe Lake which covers part of the site.

Our team has been supporting the scheme since inception. Our environmental and infrastructure specialists delivered the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and prepared both the Environmental Statement (ES) and subsequent ES Addendum reports in consultation with the local Planning Department. As part of this, we provided a wide range of supporting technical studies and reports, including transport, air quality, noise and vibration, archaeology, built heritage, ecology, arboricultural, ground conditions and contamination, in addition to developing the sustainable transport strategy.

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Our specialists also completed a waste recovery environmental permit (EP) application to enable the works to be completed under a waste recovery EP rather than a waste disposal EP. This will save the client in excess of £400,000.

Finally, our ecology team surveyed and assessed offsite areas to achieve at least 10% biodiversity net gain.