Dunard Centre: Major milestone reached in construction of Edinburgh's first concert hall in a century
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A major milestone on the construction of Edinburgh’s first new concert hall in a century has been reached with the structural base installed
The structural base of Edinburgh’s first new concert hall in a century has been completed, marking a major milestone in the £162 million project.
Ground was broken on the Dunard Centre site in St Andrew Square in December 2025 with piling work concluded this month.
The work marks significant progress in the building of the 1000-capacity venue – which is set to open in 2029. A total of 244 piles have been installed in the ground, creating the structural base that will support the future venue and revealing the full footprint of the hall for the first time.
The next phase will see the project’s construction partner, Balfour Beatty, begin excavation works to create the building’s 10-metre-deep basement level. Around 36,000m3 of material will need to be removed from the site.
Jo Buckley, chief executive of the Dunard Centre, said: “Anyone who has passed by our site over recent months will have noticed the daily arrival and departure of trucks and machinery, and a regular hum of activity as the groundworks have progressed.
“To see such a rapid transformation of this long-empty site has been incredibly exciting to watch, and I am grateful to Balfour Beatty’s team for their swift and efficient progress during this first chapter.”
The venue, supported by Royal Bank of Scotland and located behind the RBS Head Office building at No. 36 St Andrew Square, will open up a new public realm in the city’s New Town, creating pedestrian pathways between St Andrew Square, Register Place, and St James Quarter.
The milestone is a “testament to the expertise and determination of our teams, who have successfully navigated a highly constrained and complex environment in the heart of Edinburgh to keep delivery on track,” according to Martin McGough, project director at Balfour Beatty, “As we move into the next phase, we look forward to continuing to apply that capability to deliver the next stage of this landmark project.”
The David Chipperfield Architects and Reiach and Hall Architects designed building will be the first Nagata Acoustics hall in the UK. It is set to host music from across the spectrum from pop and rock, to classical, folk and jazz. It will also provide a permanent home for the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and a new venue for the Edinburgh International Festival.
The £162 million project is being funded by £25m from the City Region Deal - £10m each from the Scottish and UK governments and £5m from the city council - along with £100m raised by Impact Scotland, the charity behind the project. And in October, the Scottish Government announced a further £20m, which will be matched pound-for-pound by philanthropist and former concert pianist Dr Carol Colburn Grigor.
A 2025 report found that the Centre is projected to contribute more than £250m in Gross Value Added (GVA) over its construction and first 20 years of operation, as well as supporting 289 full-time equivalent jobs, attracting around 200,000 visitors annually, and delivering an £8.6m boost to the local economy each year.
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