St William, a Berkeley Group company, has now secured full planning permission for the regeneration of the long derelict Stratford Gasworks site from the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC).
The Section 106 legal agreement has been finalised for this sustainably located 2.2-acre brownfield site, which can now be transformed into an inviting new neighbourhood with 245 private and affordable homes close to West Ham and Stratford Stations.
The development will now require Gateway 2 approval from the Building Safety Regulator before St William can start on site.
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Image: Berkeley Group
Late last year Berkeley Group outlined its new investment strategy, including the ambition to put more sites through planning and into delivery, in response to the Government’s pro-homebuilding agenda.
The former gasworks is set to be opened up to the public with a mix of landscaped amenity spaces including public squares, new pedestrian and cycle connections and a range of play spaces for young children and families. These play spaces will range from timber boardwalks and crawl nets in Holloway Gardens to a dedicated under-5s play area in Abbey Court.
The landscape designs include a rich mix of planting, newly planted trees, fruiting shrubs and wildlife habitats, which together will deliver an anticipated biodiversity net gain of more than 223%.
The site sits alongside the Greenway, a 6km pedestrian and cycle route lined with rewilded natural habitats. This close connection to the Greenway creates an opportunity to support a broad range of species on site including nesting and foraging birds.
The regeneration plans for this brownfield site will generate circa. £2.4m of S106 contributions, which will help to enhance the quality and sense of place in the area. This will include financial support for local primary health services, improving access to the Greenway and upgrades to the road network – particularly around Rick Roberts Way and Stratford High Street. There are also anticipated CIL payments of over £2.5m.
Dean Summers, Managing Director of St William, said:
“We are delighted to have now achieved full planning consent for this complex gasworks site and look forward to delivering 245 good, green private and affordable homes here. We need to make full use of London’s brownfield sites, and I want to commend the teams at LLDC and the London Borough of Newham for helping us to finalise the Section 106 Agreement within just five weeks of the planning committee’s approval. This demonstrates a clear commitment to driving homebuilding.
“I also want to thank the local people and stakeholders who have helped to shape and improve these plans through the planning process.
“St William have now commenced the detailed design in preparation for submitting to the Building Safety Regulator for Gateway 2 approval.”
Designed in partnership with Cowen + Partners and LDA Design, St William’s proposals also include investments in the wider neighbourhood, for example making improvements to the Greenway steps to make them more user-friendly and improve local walking routes. The new connection also widens sight lines to improve passive surveillance and the feeling of security.
The design responds to the nearby Grade II* Listed Abbey Mills Pumping Station and a group of Grade II Listed mid-19th Century houses, both designed by Sir Joseph Bazalgette. The material palette features a mix of handmade bricks and façade detailing which alludes to Victorian industrial heritage and the Grade II Listed Bazalgette-designed homes near the site’s southern edge.
Anne Ogundiya, Head of Development and Transition (Planning Policy and Decisions) at the LLDC, said:
“LLDC are pleased to see the redevelopment of this vacant gasholders site for much needed homes. This design led scheme with generous landscaping and public realm improvements is expected to be the catalyst for the redevelopment of the remaining site allocation area.”
The application secured a Resolution to Grant planning permission at LLDC’s final planning committee in October 2024.
