Westminster Council sells off school site for more luxury housing

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Westminster Council sells off school site for more luxury housing

By Westminster Labour ⋅ October 5, 2011 ⋅ Post a comment

Only 20% of the new flats to be social rented.

Westminster Council has sold the freehold of the former North Westminster Community School in North Wharf Road in Paddington to a consortium called Tavistock, Meritas & Zog. Only 20% of the 434 new homes will be social rented.

This decision comes a week after the Council published a new Housing Allocation Policy which reduces the ability of the 3,500 people with priority need on the Housing Register to find a new home in the City (1,000 of whom live in overcrowded accommodation and 1,700 in temporary accommodation). The Council cites the unavailability of sufficient low cost housing as a reason for their new policy. In launching their Affordable Rent policy the Council reiterates the need to develop new low cost housing.

The proposal includes a total of 434 residential units, comprising 289 private and 145 affordable units. The 145 affordable units are comprised of units for 91 social rent and 54 intermediate units. Only 20% of the new flats will be social rented.

Labour’s Housing Spokesperson Councillor Guthrie McKie, says: “It is incredible that with the present housing crisis Westminster Council sells off its own land so that even more high value apartments for the super rich can be built. The Council should have leased out the land to experienced social housing providers so that more low cost homes could have been built to meet the needs of local families. The site is in Hyde Park Ward, the Leader of the Council’s own ward, and more low cost homes would have contributed to the Council’s aims of creating mixed communities.”

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