On Tuesday 23rd June, St William, a joint venture between National Grid and the Berkeley Group, hosted a topping out ceremony at Prince of Wales Drive in Battersea to mark the completion of the first affordable homes at the flagship scheme and new neighbourhood for the borough.
A significant milestone for the development, this first phase is delivering 229 new affordable homes in a mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments. Managed by the UK’s largest housing association Clarion Housing, 161 of the apartments are available to buy with Shared Ownership and 68 will be available with intermediate rent. The new homes are set in a prime location just off the prestigious Prince of Wales Drive and moments from the 200-acre Battersea Park.
The Leader of London Borough of Wandsworth Councillor Ravi Govindia, joined Chairman of St William Sean Ellis, Managing Director of St William Alison Dowsett and Dean Summers Managing Director for St William London South, along with delivery partner Tim Seward Director of Sales at Clarion Housing and Phil Edwards for National Grid.
A new landscape-led neighbourhood for London
The new collection of 229 affordable homes form part of the second phase of Prince of Wales Drive, which will deliver 955 new homes in total across 11 residential pavilions, alongside 100,000 sq ft of new commercial space and 65,000 sq ft of office space – transforming the five-acre former gasworks site to bring additional amenities and benefits for the local community.
Sitting at the gateway to Battersea, Chelsea and Nine Elms, Prince of Wales Drive neighbours historic Battersea Park and the new Battersea Power Station, reconnecting the two areas with expansive public realm.
Prince of Wales Drive is defined by the St William’s distinctive landscape-led ethos, with half of the scheme to feature green open space and public realm, creating a welcoming and attractive place to live, work and spend time within the wider Battersea regeneration area. Renowned landscape architects Gillespies, has thoughtfully designed the high-quality gardens, using materials that reference the scheme’s proximity to the iconic Battersea Park.
Cllr Ravi Govindia, Leader of London Borough of Wandsworth, said: “After a brief pause, regeneration of Nine Elms has resumed. I am delighted to welcome a further delivery of affordable housing and am pleased that almost a quarter of this development will be homes at affordable rent levels or for shared ownership.
“We want local families and residents to have a decent, affordable place to live with good transport links and space for leisure nearby. Time spent in lockdown has shown us how important green space is for our wellbeing, so it’s good to see that when these homes open in 2022 residents will have access to new gardens as well as nearby Battersea Park and the newly re-opened riverside path.”
Sean Ellis, Chairman of St William said: “This is a key milestone in delivering Prince of Wales Drive and the transformation of one of Battersea’s former industrial landmarks into a thriving new community. The topping out of two new residential buildings celebrates the first affordable homes in this new Zone 1 neighbourhood and demonstrates good quality partnerships with the London Borough of Wandsworth and Clarion Housing, to deliver homes across a range of tenures of the highest calibre.”
Tim Seward, Director of Sales, Clarion Housing said: “Clarion is delighted to be working with St William and the London Borough of Wandsworth on such a prestigious, landmark development. The 229 affordable homes will have a significant impact on meeting housing need in the borough, through both shared ownership and intermediate rent. Both affordable options mean residents at different income levels have an opportunity to live in this flagship scheme. Our first residents are already settled in their new homes and enjoying being part of the development and local community.”