Hammersmith and Fulham Council’s draft Local Plan, which is set to undergo its first public consultation, details a target of 25,000 new homes between 2027 and 2042
Hammersmith and Fulham Council has said it is looking to exceed housebuilding targets set out in the current London Plan as it prepares to consult on its 15-year vision for the borough. The council’s Local Plan, which is in draft form and yet to go out for its statutory regulation 18 public consultation, details how it hopes to deliver 25,000 new homes between 2027 and 2042.
The locality earmarked for the most new homes is Fulham, one of the four key regeneration areas, which is down for a potential 8,000 new ‘units’. Councils’ Local Plans provide a strategic overview of their priorities for the coming years.
Covering topics from infrastructure to housing and transport, they set policies and allocate sites to guide decisions about potential future developments. The publication of Hammersmith and Fulham’s draft Local Plan comes as it is set to undergo its regulation 18 consultation, assuming approval by Cabinet next Monday (October 13).
A second consultation is pencilled in for summer 2026 before the draft is submitted to the Secretary of State for examination. It is hoped the plan will be ready for adoption in November 2027, to run for 15 years until 2042.
The majority of the growth in the borough is to be directed into four regeneration areas, focussing on White City, Hammersmith Town Centre, Fulham and South Fulham Riverside. Thousands of new homes and other units are expected to be built alongside the regeneration of existing sites, such as the W12 Shopping Centre in Shepherd’s Bush.
Town centres are also to be enhanced and key assets like the Grade I-listed Brompton Cemetery protected. The potential demolition of the Hammersmith Flyover and construction of a new tunnel also features, plans for which have been circulating for years.
One of the largest sections in the draft plan focuses on housing supply over the 15-year term. In the policy’s introductory text the council writes: “The council will work with partner organisations and landowners to exceed the London Plan (2021) minimum target of 1,609 additional dwellings a year up to 2029 and to continue to seek at least 1,609 additional dwellings a year in the period up to 2042.”
The new homes are to be delivered via a series of approaches, from delivering housing on smaller sites and ensuring properties are occupied to the development of larger, strategic locations.
Under a sub-heading ‘Local housing need’, the council says it has commissioned a Local Housing Needs Assessment into the borough, which found the necessary figure for Hammersmith and Fulham to be 2,769 ‘dwellings per annum’.
“It however notes that this figure would only apply to Hammersmith and Fulham if the London Plan was not extant,” the draft Plan reads. “The London Plan sets 10-year housing targets for each London borough. As of the most recent London Plan (2021), this figure is 1,609 homes per year.
“At the time of writing the GLA (Greater London Authority) is working towards a new London Plan and is proposing an annual housing target of 88,000 homes per year for London. This figure will be divided amongst the boroughs and H&F’s figure amended accordingly.”
The council adds the Local Housing Need Figure also includes the area covered by the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC), which is a separate planning authority and has its own housing targets.
Commenting on the council’s plans, James Stevens, Director for Cities at the Home Builders Federation, said: “The council has taken the average annual housing figure for Hammersmith and Fulham in the London Plan – 1,609 homes a year – and applied this to each of the 15 years that its new local plan will cover, as it is required to do when preparing a local plan. This results in an overall figure of 25,000 homes.
“While it is positive that they are putting a plan in place, the revised London Plan expected next year is likely to require the boroughs to set higher targets and so it might have been prudent to have waited for that. London has an acute housing crisis and it is key that all areas plan for the number of homes needed if the capital is to remain an economic hub where people want to and are able to live.”
A council spokesperson said the local authority develops its Local Plans based on a schedule and that it is set to have built or started on a record number of new homes. They added two of the largest development projects in London, at Old Oak and Earl’s Court, both involve the borough.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council has been investing heavily both in new homes, such as those to be delivered as part of the Civic Campus, and improving repairs and maintenance of its existing stock.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) recently looked at how the council was performing on this latter measure four years after being named the worst social landlord in the country for damp and mould cases. Fresh data from the Housing Ombudsman, plus the council’s own findings, suggest progress has been made since that point, though some residents raised ongoing concerns about the service received.
A council spokesperson said in response to the piece: “We’re spending £1m-a-week to refurbish and modernise our council-owned homes over the next 10 years. We’ve put an enhanced repairs team in place for quicker and better fixes, slashed the number of damp and mould cases, handed down tough performance targets to our new maintenance contractors and built a customer-focused team to handle repairs and complaints.
“These improvements have been reflected in a significant increase in positive feedback from residents, according to the latest tenants’ satisfaction survey. The Housing Ombudsman has also recognised the positive changes we have made.
“We know there is still more to be done and won’t stop in our drive to ensure residents get the housing service that they deserve.”
Get the biggest stories from around London straight to your inbox. Sign up to MyLondon’s The 12 HERE for the 12 biggest stories each day.
