Affordable Family Homes Reduced in Abbey Wood Tower Months After Mayor Approved Scheme
A 25-storey tower block located near the Elizabeth Line station in Abbey Wood has seen its allocation of affordable family homes significantly reduced. This development comes just months after the Greater London Authority (GLA) decided to overturn Bexley Council's initial refusal of the 288-home residential project back in October.
Council Refusal Overturned by London Authority
The large residential development was initially refused by Bexley Council but this decision was overturned by the Greater London Authority. London's Deputy Mayor for Planning, Jules Pipe, overturned Bexley's rejection of the proposal after the Mayor of London exercised his right to 'call in' the rejection decision. The Mayor is entitled to do this for any development that meets specific criteria: either more than 150 residential units, over 30 metres in height, or situated on Green Belt land.
Bexley Council had refused the plans in June due to the block's substantial 85-metre height as well as concerns about potential heritage harm to the nearby historic Lesnes Abbey site. The plans were submitted by Abbey Wood Sedgemere Limited and feature two high-rise blocks containing 288 homes total—one standing 25 storeys tall and the other seven storeys.
Revised Plans Show Significant Changes
Following his decision to overturn the council's refusal, Mr. Pipe stated that the proposed development aligned with City Hall's strategic plans to deliver "genuinely affordable" homes for London residents. He emphasized that the capital must "take opportunities available to us to build more housing and affordable housing" whenever they present themselves.
Updated plans for the Abbey Wood development—which will be situated on Sedgemere Road directly opposite a Sainsbury's supermarket—have now been released. These revised documents reveal that the number of family-sized homes has been substantially reduced, and the proportion of different affordable housing types has been altered.
Specific Reductions in Affordable Housing
Within the original proposal, the development offered 27 three-bedroom properties at London Living Rent rates. This allocation has been nearly cut in half, reduced to just 16 three-bedroom units. To partially counteract this reduction, the number of two-bedroom flats offered at discounted market rent has increased from 34 to 49 units.
This adjustment means the proportion of London Living Rent accommodation has been reduced from 51 percent to just 30 percent when measured by habitable room. According to the Greater London Authority, their viability officers concluded that "the proposed affordable housing offer is the maximum provision that can now be supported." They further stated they were "satisfied that the applicant's affordable housing offer continues to provide a positive and significant contribution to the overall public benefits package within the planning balance."
The ongoing changes to this development highlight the complex balancing act between housing delivery targets and genuine affordability in London's increasingly competitive property market.
