Construction has begun on a 400,000sq ft (37,160sq m) mixed-use development in Staines.

The Staines Central project, which will include restaurants and a 155-room hotel as well as offices and retail space, is the brainchild of Invista Real Estate and was designed by TP Bennett.

The hotel will be operated by Golden Tulip and will mark the company’s first Tulip Inn in the UK.

Construction work on the first phase, which includes the hotel, has already begun and should be finished by 2010. Planning permission for the second phase, which includes further office space and residential units, is currently being decided.

Nick Howitt, of Invista Real Estate, said: “This scheme has been in development for some time and represents a substantial investment and development programme by Invista. It will act as a catalyst for attracting additional business to the area, which is already home to some of the UK’s leading companies, demonstrating growing confidence in the Thames Valley office market.”