29 April 2014
The regeneration of part of South London could feature hundreds of new self build homes.
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A Lambeth Council-owned site along Somerleyton Road is set to become a community-led development that could include 300 self build homes – 40-50% for social rent housing and a proportion for co-op housing. And the group Brixton Green, formed by people who live or work in the area, hopes to acquire the site and deliver the project.
Instead of handing over the site to a developer, Somerleyton Road will be developed in a new way. The Council will appoint a design team and a development manager to work with the council and the community group to develop the site.
Brixton Green has engaged with more than 40 local organisations and over 1,000 local citizens have become shareholders. It aims to maximise the number of new genuinely affordable homes and believes that self build is a realistic option to bring down costs.
The community group aims to secure planning permission by the Autumn. If the Council is confident the plans are viable and they meet the Council’s and the community’s ambitions, construction could start as early as June 2015, with the handover to Lambeth or a community trust/co-operative by 2017.
