Peterborough One (PE1)

An award-winning shopping and leisure destination with striking glasshouse-inspired architecture, landscaped spaces and a strong connection to the neighbouring village of Eye. Peterborough One offers something noticeably different from the conventional retail park.

Peterborough One opened in 2010 as Peterborough Garden Park, a £25 million development created around a major garden centre and a collection of home, lifestyle and leisure businesses. Its dramatic timber, steel and glass architecture was influenced by the great glasshouses at Kew and Wisley.

The original scheme was designed as much more than a row of retail units. A landscaped courtyard, feature gardens and generous pedestrian spaces gave it the character of a destination centre. The quality of the development earned it a national award for the UK's best out-of-town retail scheme.

In 2017 the site was reimagined as Peterborough One, often shortened to PE1. The new identity reflected its growing mixture of shopping, leisure, food, events and family activities while retaining the garden-led character that made the original development distinctive.

Today, visitors can combine everyday shopping with home and garden inspiration, fashion, books, pet supplies, food and an indoor inflatable theme park. Seasonal events and traditional car boot sales bring additional life to the site at different points during the year.

There is also a thoughtful local story built into the development. A circular artwork created by potter Richard Mill incorporates individual tiles carrying the names of 320 local children. It was designed to give families living nearby a lasting connection with the site.

The original development also reflected Peterborough's environmental ambitions. Recycled soil, rainwater harvesting, low-energy lighting, sustainably sourced timber and provision for cycling were all incorporated into its construction, making PE1 an interesting example of early twenty-first-century destination design.