Property development and hospitality company, Westcombe Group, has secured planning approval for its major regeneration of Kingston Bridge House in Hampton Wick, paving the way for a mixed-use scheme including a new five-star hotel called Hotel Indigo, part of IHG Hotels & Resorts, alongside 22 new homes.

The company originally submitted a planning application for the former Kingston University accommodation back in 2025.

The approval marks a major milestone in Westcombe's expansion into hospitality through its Acre Hotels collection and the start of a long-term relationship in the UK and overseas with leading international hotel group and partner, IHG.

The scheme will transform the former student accommodation building on Church Grove into a luxury boutique five-star hotel with full facilities including a bar, upscale restaurant, and conference spaces alongside 22 luxury one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, including four affordable homes.

According to Westcombe Group, the development is expected to bring significant benefits to Hampton Wick and the greater Kingston and Richmond area.

An independent economic impact assessment estimates it will unlock £20 million of construction investment, support around 50 high-quality jobs on-site once completed, attract approximately 9,000 hotel visitors a year and generate around £4.3 million of annual retail and leisure spending in the local economy.

It is also projected to generate approximately £195,000 a year in Council Tax and business rates to support the delivery of local public services.

Westcombe Group is a family-run business, which was founded 50 years ago, and CEO Kamal Pankhania told Nub News that real estate is in his family's DNA and that he has a real passion for buildings.

He added that he was introduced to the industry from a young age and would spend his summer holidays at building sites from the age of eight.

Speaking about the benefits of creating a residential and hotel mixed-use complex, Pankhania explained that there are economic advantages.

He said: "Believe me, we need many, many multi-thousand homes in this country at the moment, for sure, but the current government, due to their policies, are not serving what's required. And they're failing that miserably.

"Kingston Bridge House was bought as a majestic building, which was vacant, and its natural life was looking at a mixed-use scheme, even though we started embarking on residential.

"The world is different now, however, and at the end of the COVID pandemic in 2020, and when we completed the touches in early Q1 of 2021, the market was actually getting out of our economic shell life and going into growth.

"So about two years ago, we decided mixed use was the best course of action, and that splitting the development into two blocks - residence and hotel - worked wonderfully well."

He continued: "The council gets business rates and Council Tax. The hotel brings business and jobs, and Hampton Wick gets a luxury boutique hotel not like your average Premier Inn or Travelodge."

Pankhania explained that Westcombe Group was in communication with various hotel industries, including Hilton and Marriott, but said that IHG was the best choice.

He added: "It's a very large hotel group. They manage, own and operate multiple thousands of hotels across the board, a lot with franchises and managing contracts globally in every country in the world.

"I've got a very good relationship with the executive board and their relationship development team, and this conversation started fully about two years ago, which we bonded with.

"We like Hilton; we would have got a franchise relationship with Hilton, but there's a double trip across the bridge, so it doesn't make sense.

"And Akol, as lovely as they are, we thought there's nothing in their offering that we would want to have in a lifestyle boutique."

Pankhania said that a lifestyle boutique is "basically a hotel which goes on the counter, so it's not like a 500-bedroom or a 200-bedroom property".

He added: "We've gone for 90 rooms. We'll also be providing a gym and spa going forward.

"Boutiques have their own character. They're not massive, but you feel that you're in an environment where you appreciate it. And they've got individual characteristics in the rooms and the theme, giving them a quaintness. What adds to the unique character of this development is that it is facing the river."

Westcombe Group's residential schemes range from first-time buyers with £250,000 up to ultra-high net worth buyers who are looking to buy an apartment at £400 - £500,000.

"But the top end of the market is totally dead now," Pankhania said.

He continued: "Labour decided to remove the foreign buyers of the UK with their policy of non-bonds. That's a damaging limitation, and so is the abolition of inheritance tax.

"That's why we changed our model. But the important thing is, the housing market has crashed in the last couple of years. The building safety came after Grenfell. We looked at block two as residential and we would love to have more apartments, but the economic policies outraged that full stop."

Speaking about the hotel side of the development, the CEO said: "I think the hotel and the high street scene in Hampton Wick complement each other - you can enjoy the restaurant with your partner, but also invite your friends down. It's a good social scene as well.

"And it benefits the area as Hampton Wick needs a high-quality restaurant."

Westcombe Group has already started construction work for the residential side of the development, and is expected to be completed by the end of this month.

Now that it has been given planning approval for the hotel side, Pankhania says that the project is likely to start in the new year with an expected opening in summer 2028.

Speaking about the planning approval, Pankhania said: "This is a very exciting moment for Westcombe and for Hampton Wick as our proposals receive planning approval.

"We are transforming a formerly vacant building into new homes, affordable housing and a five-star luxury hotel that will bring jobs, prosperity and thousands of visitors into the local area each year.

"I am particularly proud that the hotel will be branded as Hotel Indigo, as the latest addition to IHG Hotels & Resorts' impressive global portfolio of high-value hospitality assets.

"IHG is one of the most respected names in global hospitality, and we see this project as marking the start of a long and successful relationship between our two businesses, here in the UK and overseas."

Willemijn Geels, Vice President, Development, Europe at IHG Hotels & Resorts, added: "We are delighted to welcome Westcombe Group to IHG and bring Hotel Indigo to the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in the UK.

"Hampton Wick's rich history, riverside setting and strong local identity make it a natural fit for a brand that celebrates neighbourhood stories and authentic local experiences.

"This signing reflects strong owner demand for Hotel Indigo in the UK and Ireland and comes as we recently celebrated 200 open Hotel Indigo properties around the world.

"Together with Westcombe Group, we look forward to creating a distinctive hotel for guests and the local community, supported by IHG's global scale and powerful enterprise."