{"id":263993,"date":"2025-11-15T08:54:13","date_gmt":"2025-11-15T08:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/263993\/"},"modified":"2025-11-15T08:54:13","modified_gmt":"2025-11-15T08:54:13","slug":"bell-phillips-southwark-infill-housing-gets-fresh-planning-nod-after-legal-saga","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/263993\/","title":{"rendered":"Bell Phillips\u2019 Southwark infill housing gets fresh planning nod after legal saga"},"content":{"rendered":"

The scheme comprises 34 social rent homes across two blocks at the Elim Estate in Bermondsey, which is part of the 1,500-home Leathermarket Estates.<\/p>\n

A previous application by the practice was approved by the council in 2023.\u00a0But in March this year, a High Court judge overturned the decision<\/a> on the basis that the council had failed to apply national flood risk policy.<\/p>\n

The ruling followed a judicial review lodged by the Public Interest Law Centre, following opposition from local residents. They had also complained of inadequate consultation, overshadowing and loss of social amenities.<\/p>\n

An amended planning application was submitted in August, winning council approval last month.<\/p>\n

The approved scheme featured amendments made in response to changes in building regulations, \u2018updated policy expectations\u2019, and matters raised through the judicial review process, according to a report by the scheme\u2019s planning consultant Maddox Planning.<\/p>\n

The changes include \u2018revised building cores to incorporate an evacuation shaft containing an evacuation lobby, lift(s), stair, and temporary waiting space, with lobbies ventilated via external wall vents\u2019, the report said.<\/p>\n

A flood risk sequential test has also been completed, according to the consultants\u2019 document. As part of the plans, a six-storey block containing 16 flats will be built on a former garage site.<\/p>\n

A second six-storey block, which will replace a ball court, will have 18 flats. The scheme will also provide a new outdoor ball court, children\u2019s playground, and community garden.<\/p>\n

The consented project is the third development by Bell Phillips for Leathermarket Community Benefit Society (CBS), whose board is made up primarily of local residents.<\/p>\n

Bell Phillips director Melissa Dowler said the development would give \u2018new life to underutilised sites to address an acute demand for secure, high-quality social housing, while also enhancing the estate for the benefit of the wider community\u2019.<\/p>\n

Leathermarket CBS co-chair Liam McGrath said: \u2018Securing this consent is a major step forward for our community.<\/p>\n

\u2018The development will provide desperately needed homes to be let at a social rent for local families and ensure that people with deep roots in Bermondsey can continue to live here.\u2019<\/p>\n

Before the 2023 approval, the development team had already been on a three-year planning journey with the scheme.<\/p>\n

When the original designs \u2013 for 32 homes \u2013 were submitted in 2020, residents raised concerns over the location of a proposed new basketball court and open space. The scheme was subsequently withdrawn and resubmitted in summer 2022.<\/p>\n

Then, in June 2023, a decision was deferred by the council\u2019s planning committee to \u2018allow for additional information to be submitted\u2019.<\/p>\n

The Elim Estate currently has four blocks, each of which is four storeys, containing a total of 121 flats.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The scheme comprises 34 social rent homes across two blocks at the Elim Estate in Bermondsey, which is…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":263994,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[6225,6485,6486,1120,96,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-263993","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-arts","9":"tag-arts-and-design","10":"tag-artsanddesign","11":"tag-design","12":"tag-entertainment","13":"tag-uk","14":"tag-united-kingdom","15":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263993","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=263993"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263993\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/263994"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=263993"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=263993"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=263993"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}