Bromley Council has approved plans to nearly double the amount of affordable homes for a housing project in West Wickham, increasing the number of socially rented flats for the scheme to 100 per cent. The development will see 26 new affordable homes being added to the site on Glebe Way.
The scheme was previously approved by the council in April 2022, but council documents said increased housing pressure had led officers to review the original scheme. A council officer said at the meeting that the cost of temporary accommodation at the time of the authority purchasing the scheme meant it was originally more viable to split the homes into 14 socially rented units and 12 being offered for private sale.
The council officer said at the meeting on March 27: “Unfortunately temporary accommodation costs have continued to rise, which is obviously not good news generally. However, what it does mean is that we are constantly reassessing the financial models for our schemes and it means it is now better financially for the council to move this scheme to be fully affordable.”
They added: “This will deliver 26 affordable homes, some quite large three-bedroom units as part of that, which is great news for our housing team who desperately need more homes.”
The report said the savings that would be obtained from retaining the remaining flats for affordable housing would be greater than the expected £4 million accrued from private sales. Council documents said temporary accommodation costs for the authority had increased to nearly £10,000 a year per household. A report from last January said Bromley Council had a target of providing 1,000 new affordable homes to address the rising costs of temporary accommodation.
Conservative Councillor Nicholas Bennett, representing the West Wickham ward, said at the meeting: “Obviously we regret that we are going to lose some mixed development, but the figures as they are make it very clear that this is to the benefit of the council and also the fact that we’ve got some 1,600 people homeless at the moment. It’s very important that we’re able to provide in borough if we can.”
The project is projected to cost £13.6 million and will include an extension to the area’s existing library with a community space and café.
The lack of financing through the private homes being sold is expected to be provided by an increased GLA grant and external borrowing. The scheme is forecasted to save the authority at least £31,000 per year.
Construction on the West Wickham site began in March 2023 and the housing project is due to be completed in January 2025 with tenants expected to move in the following month. A council officer said at the meeting that the new library is expected to be completed by August this year.
Picture 1: A CGI of the new library and cafe as seen from Glebe Way.
Picture 2: A CGI of the new housing development as seen from Croft Avenue. Credits: Brimelow McSweeney Architects / Bromley Council
