Stanley Road Scheme Gets Go Ahead After Height Reduced

Over 500 objections lodged during application process

A visualisation of the tower block in South Acton from the developer's planning submission

March 5, 2024

Ealing Council has approved the construction of 140 flats in South Acton after four years of consultation with developers. Initially planned to be 22 storeys high the plan received over 500 objections since it was first proposed by Henley Investments back in 2020.

The site is bordered by the industrial estate to the south west, a public footpath to the north, Stanley Road to the east and an allotment to the south east. It is currently used as a car park, servicing the adjoining industrial units.

Objections included concerns that the ‘relatively small’ site would be over-developed with the building being too high, blocking out sunlight including to nearby allotments and causing overcrowding on public transport. However, the council officer presenting plans to the council’s planning committee insisted that many of the concerns raised over the past four years had been addressed.

A major change was the height of the main building, which was reduced by to 17 storeys. The number of flats being built also decreased to 140 from 210 and 35 per cent will be classed as affordable housing.

The scheme was brought forward as the same time as the South Acton masterplan which will regulate future construction in the area to ensure they fall within certain parameters. This includes height limit of 15 storeys, something not observed in the Stanley Road plan.

However, the council officer said that the developer’s agreement to improve pedestrian areas to the north of the site as well as more greening in the area and public railway improvements meant he believed this detail could be overlooked. This did raise some eyebrows amongst councillors.

Earlier in the meeting an 18-storey project in Greenock Road had been approved on a similar basis as a “one-off” because of a roadway improvement agreement. Cllr Jon Ball was quick to raise the concern that there would be no point in having a masterplan if every project that did not adhere to it was treated as a one-off.

Ealing Council's South Acton masterplan

He said councillors had already approved the Greenock Road plan on the proviso that it was the one of its kind, adding, “we are now being asked to have another one-off at a neighbouring site.” He also threw his weight behind overshadowing concerns saying properties in Ravenswood Court could have daylight blocked by the construction as well as properties on Kingswood and Weston Roads.

He concluded, “I understand it is better than the schemes for this site previously, but it does seem to me that the is an over-development of this site.”

Cllr Gareth Shaw said he took Cllr Ball’s point that this was indeed a second ‘one-off’ but said that he agreed with officers that the improvements made to scheme over the four-year consultation was enough to sway him.

Cllr Driscoll added that although he was willing to approve the plan, he wanted to see the masterplan more rigorously enforced in the future to prevent anymore ‘one-offs’.

The plan was approved after councillors voted by 9-2 to give it the green light.

Rory Bennett – Local Democracy Reporter