Planning permission granted for 102 social rent flats

Ealing Council has given the go ahead for a new women’s-only social housing tower block in the borough, close to Acton Town Underground station.

The 15-storey tower will replace the existing 1930s building, Brook House, located on Gunnersbury Lane. The original estate, which also included additional blocks made in the 1970s, is not suitable for refurbishment.

The approved plans will replace the existing buildings and 39 homes on site to create 102 social rent affordable flats for single women, particularly those who face inequality, abuse and disadvantages, especially in the housing market.

The application is supported by Women’s Pioneer Housing (WPH), who are only one of two such specialised housing associations in the country, and L&Q, one of the largest social housing provider in the UK.

The proposed new women’s-only flats, which will be for new tenants as well as existing ones wishing to return, will have dual aspect and a balcony. Works are expected to start on site this summer, with the design also including a range of recreational spaces for residents.

Women’s Pioneer Housing work closely with women’s refuges, homelessness agencies and women’s organisations to provide long-term safe, secure and affordable homes for women.

The organisation says the Brook House project comes amid rising levels of inequality for women in the UK, particularly those who are older, have a disability or are BAME women. Adding there is a huge existing demand for this type of housing; in Ealing alone there are over 600 single women on the social housing waiting list.

The scheme is brought forward with support from L&Q, through their initiative Build London Partnership (BLP), which seeks to find a tailored solution to London’s housing crisis.

Through the BLP, L&Q partners with smaller or specialised housing associations to work in collaboration to develop small, disused, infill and challenging sites across the capital.

WPH says this ‘helps unlock key sites in London and deliver much needed affordable and social housing, often for hard-to-reach communities’.