Colindale emerges as a new Zone 4 property hotspot for first-time buyers: former Met police academy in Hendon has been transformed into new homes

Hendon’s Metropolitan Police training college has a new identity - Colindale Gardens, a new 2,900-home neighbourhood spanning 47 acres - where the first homes have been launched.

This £1 billion “community” project will take 12 years to complete and eventually more than 6,000 people will live there, part of a wider regeneration area that includes an upgrade to Colindale Underground station.

Recently designated a housing growth zone by Boris Johnson, this unspectacular suburb is ready for a change. Traditionally it has been a place for middle-class commuting families to travel to the City or West End.

Being on the Northern line, in Zone 4, Colindale is now billed as a location for young Londoners priced out of the centre to buy.

Homes at the former police academy, Colindale Gardens, start at £335,000.

Disused office buildings are being converted, while newly-built apartment blocks and houses will overlook extensive green space, including parks and sports pitches for use by the on-site primary school. Call Redrow on 020 3538 7355.

Nearby Beaufort Park is another large new project, being built on the site of a former RAF aerodrome. Set in 25 acres, it has 2,800 homes plus spa, shops, bars, cafés and other onsite amenities.

The site is where Britain’s first loop-the-loop and parachute descent took place, but there is no architectural link with the aerodrome’s historic past — even a listed watchtower has been moved off to the local RAF Museum. Prices from £344,950. Call 020 8511 8600.