Hammersmith and Fulham Council has given final approval for the redevelopment of Avonmore Primary School, enabling construction of a new educational facility and 91 homes, with 45 designated as affordable. Cabinet members agreed to appropriate the land from educational use to housing, a necessary step to begin construction.
Project Background and Approval Process
The scheme was initially approved by councillors in November 2024, and pre-work has already begun at the school site. The council serves as both developer and freeholder for the project, which was deemed necessary due to the condition of the existing school buildings, constructed in the 1950s.
The redevelopment is the first project under the council's Community Schools Programme, agreed by cabinet members in 2019. This initiative aims to use funds from new housing developments to revitalise primary schools across the borough.
Controversy and Objections
The project faced 76 objections, with critics questioning the use of public land. Richard Farthing, former Chair of the Hammersmith Society, said at the planning committee meeting: “You're taking away public land for what appears to be at least 50 per cent private gain, and the school isn't actually that bad overall.”
Despite objections, approval was granted, and staff and pupils relocated to the former Queensmill School on Mund Street to allow construction to begin. Because the project involved building homes on land designated for educational use, Government sign-off was required, which was given in December 2025.
Council and Leader Statements
Council Leader Stephen Cowan praised the scheme as a “major success” in bringing much-needed housing to the borough. He said: “You talk to anyone in the building industry, and they will say there’s not a lot of building going on at the moment. You talk to anybody in other councils, and they will say they’re struggling to get stuff out of the ground. And yet here we have yet another scheme.”
Cllr Andrew Jones, Cabinet Member for the Economy, told members the new school will deliver an “enhanced learning environment” and replace the existing “defunct” site. Cllr Alex Sanderson, Deputy Leader with responsibilities for Health and Social Care and Children and Education, said: “This is a really welcome milestone after quite a long journey for the Avonmore School community. We are replacing an outdated post-war building with a modern, sustainable, and really inclusive school with much, much better facilities for children with SEND, new spaces for learning, for playing, for community use.”
Development Details and Timeline
In a report, council officers wrote: “The redevelopment’s aim is to create a lasting and positive legacy of a well-designed, inclusive, accessible school and residential development with energy efficient buildings, to transform the locality into one that caters for the safety and wellbeing of local residents as well as offering social and economic benefits including employment and training during the construction stage.”
A council timeline notes that the main building and homes are expected to be completed in late summer 2028. A council spokesperson previously said: “We are excited to start rebuilding Avonmore Primary School to create the new, state-of-the-art learning spaces that both pupils and teachers deserve, especially with new facilities for pupils with special educational needs.”
