Peabody to build 3,502 new homes in Dagenham Green

Peabody, one of the largest housing associations in London, has just filed a planning application to Barking and Dagenham Council for a new residential-led mixed-use development in Dagenham Green. The scheme, on the site of the former Ford Stamping Plant, will deliver 3,502 new homes, 1,550 of which will be affordable.

The site where Peabody will build the new homes, where the old Ford Stamping Plant was for over 80 years

Peabody had acquired the 45-acre site in East London earlier this year from Europa Capital and St Congar, who had undertaken extensive remediation work, recycling 98% of the 322,000 tonnes of material extracted from the site.

The historic Ford plant, which opened in 1931 and produced over 10 million cars before closing in 2013, has been demolished. The site is now brownfield land and the new development is a “fantastic opportunity to bring the empty site back into use,” Peabody said.

Since the acquisition Peabody has been engaging with local community groups, including youth organizations, to shape the masterplan design for the site.

Local residents’ list of requests included good quality, affordable homes, a public park with play space for children, shops and restaurants, communal spaces for meetings and a secondary school. They also asked for a sustainable and environmentally friendly development. All these requests will be taken on board, Peabody said.

The homes will be built in a variety of brick-built styles and designs and will include apartments, maisonettes and houses, all with access to outdoor spaces. There will be open green spaces between the buildings with a particular focus on biodiversity, Peabody said.

A sketch of what the Peabody development will look like.

The buildings will vary in height, with the majority 46 metres tall and some, close to Dagenham Dock Station, up to 68 metres high. The homes will be responsibly built, said Peabody, with attention paid to the materials and processes at the design and building stage and then to using renewable energy to power the homes once built.

The first homes are expected to be ready in 2025. Nearly half of them will be affordable. “We are proud to offer affordable homes and we are committed to social rent,” said the association. “We aim to create a vibrant and sustainable new neighbourhood that reflects the site’s heritage and incorporates new spaces for learning, leisure, play and work.”

The Greater London Authority had awarded an £80 million grant from its Affordable Housing Programme to Peabody to enable the association to buy the site. 

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