The site is a pedestrian and cycle route, approximately 150m long which passes under two elevated sections of the M8 motorway which pass between 10 and 15m overhead and two motorway slip roads which pass approximately 2.5m overhead.

The context for the design of the new John Hope Gateway was the contours, paths and trees of a mature landscape and a grand circular forecourt.

The building is located at the Gateway to Dartmouth to the west of the town on a steeply sloping site.

The site is in Stonebridge, North West London at the heart of a 1960s era council estate which was once notorious for its high crime levels and low-economic status.