Council backs £1.4bn housing plan despite concerns

Dennison Point in east London has yet to be refurbished

An east London council has decided to go against recommendations from councillors who raised concerns over increased costs to the regeneration of a housing estate which was part of the London 2012 Olympic legacy.

Newham councillors had raised financial concerns for the Carpenters Estate project in Stratford after the estimated borrowing costs jumped from £845m to £1.4bn in two years.

Councillor Joshua Garfield said he was concerned future generations would be left with a huge debt however Newham's mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz, said the council was trying to get other investment.

The estate aims to deliver about 2,300 homes across a 28-acre site, of which 50% plan to be affordable social rent homes.

However, the Carpenters Estate has been subject to multiple regeneration plans and protests for years.

'No other money'

A council report, which was approved by cabinet members on 4 February, said the project had been hit by inflation, costs on new building safety requirement and an increase to the total number of homes.

Due to these challenges, the report said the total build programme would need to be extended from 11 to 14 years.

On 18 February, overview and scrutiny members called-in the approval of the report, arguing it needed greater scrutiny and accountability as the project raised "serious" financial and ethical concerns.

A call-in allows councillors to scrutinise an executive decision which has not yet been implemented, but can result in a decision being reconsidered by cabinet.

The area around the estate was part of regeneration plans for the London Olympics

Mr Garfield, who was moved from his home on the estate when he was a child to make way for the regeneration, had concerns over the impact borrowing rates could have on the council's finances.

"I worry by the time our successors are sitting here, the only thing the General Fund will be paying for is temporary accommodation and this interest.

"There will be no other money in the budget, and we simply cannot leave that legacy for those that proceed us."

The committee decided to send the original decision back to cabinet for reconsideration, and came up with a list of recommendations which included providing at least twice-yearly updates on the project and to consider different funding strategies such as selling some or part of the estate.

A special cabinet meeting was held on Monday where Ms Fiaz said the council was "open to exploring alternative investment and delivery options".

"Officers have initiated conversations with a range of potential partners to explore opportunities to attract external investment to support our housing delivery and estate regeneration strategies, as part of an emerging policy direction," she added.

Years of uncertainty

The estate has 710 homes in total, from the low-rise terraces to the three tower blocks of Lund Point, Dennison Point and James Riley Point but in 2025 less than half of those are occupied.

Plans to regenerate the estate first began in 2003, after residents had complained to the council about poor building maintenance and asbestos and rodent infestations.

James Riley Point, which had deteriorated the worst, was to be demolished and the very first residents were decanted from their homes in 2004.

The other two tower blocks were set to be refurbished but this was deemed too expensive for the Labour-run council, and residents were eventually moved out of their homes and the low-rise properties on Doran Walk in 2009.