Canada Water Masterplan: Affordable Homes Could Drop to just 10%

New planning documents submitted to Southwark council for the Canada Water redevelopment has shown revised designs, which include taller buildings and a potential reduction in the proportion of affordable housing delivered through the scheme.  

The original outline plan was considered to comply with local planning policy of a minimum of 35% affordable housing, including 25% homes for social rent. The latest viability assessment – the document that outlines how much money a developer is expected to make or lose on a given project -  however, claims that doing so would risk the developer losing money.

The revised plans, which according to the developer are in response to inflation in the construction sector and new planning regulations such as the “2 staircase rule”, involve taller buildings and float a potential reduction to just 10% affordable housing in order for the scheme to be viable. 

This comes the weekend after the Southwark Housing and Planning Emergency campaign led a 600-person protest triggered by a development in Peckham dropping to just 12% affordable housing. Liberal Democrat Opposition leader Cllr Victor Chamberlain addressed the protest, speaking in support of more genuinely affordable homes. 

Reacting to the news, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Surrey Docks Cllr Adam Hood, said:  

"We are deeply troubled by the huge changes to the masterplan being ushered in that fly in the face of what the community had previously been told. The council must robustly challenge the viability assessment to ensure it is accurate, and seek urgent clarification from British Land that the 10% affordable housing figure floated in these documents does not become the new baseline. We need the 35% affordable housing that was originally agreed, any less would be unacceptable to residents in Surrey Docks and Rotherhithe who need and deserve more affordable housing. 

"I know the local community has worked in good faith with the developers for over a decade, which makes the increase in the heights and massing of these blocks, whilst potentially cutting affordable housing, even more disappointing" 

Liberal Democrat Leader of the Opposition Cllr Victor Chamberlain added: 

"Once again we're seeing Southwark used as a playground for developers, who are making and reneging on promises of affordable housing. Our Labour council is capitulating once again to the big developers. They are too weak to stand up and challenge big developers, and they've failed to equip council officers with the in-house skills and expertise to challenge viability assessments.

“As a result across Southwark we're seeing levels of genuinely affordable housing drop below even the most modest targets. That's why I spoke out at SHAPE's protest on Saturday to join with residents who have no faith in this council to tackle our housing emergency ."