Vote due on squeezing 250 more homes onto White City Estate

Plans for 253 new homes in the middle of one of west London’s biggest estates are being recommended for approval ahead of a crunch vote next week.

The proposal, entitled White City Central, would also see a collection of buildings including a nursery and housing office demolished and replaced with new facilities such as a community hub.

Hammersmith and Fulham council is behind the plans, which it sees as key to tackling its waiting list and meeting housing targets.

Some residents living in the White City Estate have however spoken previously of their concerns. One long-term resident said it was ‘hard not to feel like we’re being pushed aside’.

The White City Estate is one of the largest in the borough. Built in the 1930s, it consists of around 2,000 homes plus a range of communal facilities.

It is situated within the wider White City Regeneration Area, which in the borough’s Local Plan is earmarked to deliver a total of 6,000 new homes and 10,000 jobs. Schemes for White City Central date back to 2019, when the local authority’s cabinet agreed to begin the consultation process with residents.

An application was filed by the council last summer in which it detailed plans to redevelop the site. Currently occupied by buildings including the Randolph and Beresford Early Years Centre and a housing office, the proposed scheme will see the existing structures knocked down and replaced.

The various services would be relocated in temporary on-site facilities while work is ongoing before moving into the new community hub. The exception would be the nursery, which would remain in its current location while the new building is constructed.

Around half of the 253 homes would be ‘affordable’, including 76 for social rent, with public spaces such as a new all-weather games pitch and children’s play areas also proposed. The council’s officers’ report, compiled ahead of Wednesday’s planning committee meeting notes 30 objections, one supporting letter and four neutral comments were received in response to the application.

Concerns raised included an alleged lack of transparency by the council, the loss of community and green spaces such as the existing Bridget Joyce Square, which is to be replaced elsewhere on the site, and overdevelopment in an already densely populated area.

“Many residents are strongly opposed to the development, feeling that it prioritises financial gain over the wellbeing of the existing community, and they demand a reconsideration of the proposal that respects the needs of current residents,” the report states.

The White City Residents Association also criticised the application, describing the consultation process as ‘exclusionary, incomplete, and not truly involving the community’. Somali Parents CIC however did back the proposal, praising the proposed new facilities and the additional housing.

A spokesman for the local authority previously said that subject to approval, a resident-led working group will be involved in the selection of the main contractor and monitoring of the works.

“This redevelopment plan aims to breathe new life into the heart of White City,” they said.

Pictured top: Randolph Beresford Nursery School and Early Years Centre in the White City Estate (Picture: LDRS)