Labour Westminster Council’s plans for new homes at 291 Harrow Road have been given the go-ahead by the Planning Committee.
The plans are for 144 new homes across three separate buildings, with 50% of the flats being at affordable rents, including 27 General Needs Social Rent Council Homes (focused on family-sized units), 24 Adult Social Care units at social rent and 21 intermediate rent homes for key workers. 72 flats will be available for private sale in order to help pay for the delivery of the affordable units.
The development will be a highly efficient, low-carbon scheme comprising three buildings at 15, 10 and five storeys.
Cllr Ellie Ormsby, Westminster City Council Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Renters, said:
“291 Harrow Road presents a fantastic opportunity for us to deliver a greater number of high-quality homes for social rent – a necessary step considering there are over 6,000 households on Westminster’s housing waiting list – while also delivering on our ambitious sustainability commitments as one of the capital’s greenest developments.
Moreover, a large proportion of these homes, a sixth of the total number, are allocated for use by adult social care services, where we are seeing growing demand. We’re excited to develop a building which embraces inclusivity and delivers for the diverse needs across our community.”
Labour-led Westminster City Council is committed to delivering at least 50% affordable housing across its development projects, with 70% of these affordable homes being council homes for social rent and 30% being intermediate rent at London Living Rent.
Designs for 291 Harrow Road use the ‘Be Lean, Clean, Green and Seen’ energy framework, which utilises a fabric first approach to maximise reduction in energy through passive design measures. New, high-efficiency servicing equipment and efficient façades will minimise the energy usage of the building. The scheme will make use of air source heat pumps and solar photovoltaic panels to maximise the use of renewable energy. It is anticipated that across the site build, and once occupied, 291 Harrow Road will achieve a 70% site-wide reduction over the baseline for the proposed development, far exceeding the Greater London Authority target of 35%.
The scheme will redeliver the Multi-Use Games area with plans for improved local access. It will also help activate the Harrow Road with new commercial units on the front of the development. The scheme includes improved publicly accessible greening, which will help brighten up the area around the site. The development will also unlock the long-overdue adoption of the surrounding sections of Elmfield Way to tackle longstanding parking problems.