As part of the development of our proposals we have engaged with Southwark Council’s planning team, the GLA, local councillors and residents and businesses in the area around the site.

We are grateful to the many local residents, businesses and others who have given us feedback on our initial plans. This has really helped us shape our emerging plans.

We have responded positively to that feedback and our plans have improved as a result. Here are some of the key matters raised during the first consultation:

Will the scheme meet council policy on affordable housing?

Yes. We are providing 40% affordable homes as an integral part of our scheme. This includes a significant proportion being allocated for larger family sized homes, for which there is strong demand.

This will see 51 affordable homes built, 65% of which will be Social Rent. The homes will include traditional terrace housing and all will benefit from a large area of private and shared amenity space, including dedicated play areas catering for young children.

Is East Dulwich an appropriate location for student accommodation?

Research shows that in the region of 18,000 students in Southwark are currently living in private rented accommodation, properties that were originally built and occupied as family homes. Both Southwark Council and the Greater London Authority recognise the need to provide Purpose Built Student Accommodation in the borough, and this site in East Dulwich is well located given the strong public transport links to some of the Capital’s higher education institutions.

Introducing student accommodation at this site will make a positive contribution to East Dulwich, helping to make it an even more culturally rich and economically active place to live.

In response to concerns raised during the consultation the roof terrace will designed to operate as a more quiet green space for students to access; it will not be designed to accommodate large group gatherings.

What is the justification for the building height?

The overall building height has been lowered across the entire site, achieving a reduction of 1.0-1.5m and the building closest to the east has been repositioned and pulled back by 3m. The two images below show our original scheme and the flat-roofed scheme currently being proposed.

We have over the course of many months made proactive efforts to minimise the size of the northern part of the scheme, with a specific focus on mitigating impacts along the eastern boundary.

We believe these changes not only address concerns raised during the consultation process, but also contribute positively to the environmental impact of the development.

How will you ensure that during the construction phase inconvenience is kept to a minimum?

We will submit a detailed construction management and logistics plan to Southwark Council for their approval prior to the commencement of any construction activity. Our contractors are experienced in working on constrained sites and have management and logistics experience that will be applied to minimise as far as possible any avoidable disruption. Our contractors will meet Considerate Contractor obligations which include active engagement with neighbours and the local community, including regular updates.