Redevelopment proposals for the Leegate Centre in the London Borough of Lewisham have been the subject of planning discussions for over a decade.
The first formal pre-application meeting with the first developer, St Modwen, and the Greater London Authority took place in September 2014, culminating in a Resolution to Grant for comprehensive redevelopment of the Site.
The previous owners, Galliard Homes, obtained the site from St Modwen in 2021 and obtained planning permission for the extant consent in November 2024. In March 2025, the site was acquired by the current landowner and applicant of the revised proposals, London Square.
The Site is now vacant and has recently been hoarded up. Its last use was primarily a shopping centre (the
Leegate Centre) with retail, food and beverage units at ground and first floor levels, along with community uses
and 36 leasehold residential units above. Eight-storey Leegate House on the north-west corner contains office
accommodation. A multi-storey car park occupies the southern third of the site, alongside a petrol station converted to a car wash.
London Plan Policy H1 seeks to optimise the potential for housing delivery on all suitable and available
brownfield sites, including those with existing or planned PTALs of 3 – 6, which are located within 800m distance of a station of the town centre boundary; mixed-use redevelopment of car parks; and housing intensification on other appropriate low-density sites in commercial, leisure and infrastructure areas.
The principle of development has been established through the extant scheme, and this S73 Application seeks
to maintain the key principles whilst making several amendments to ensure that the scheme is viable and
deliverable, so that the public benefits can be realised.
The applicant is proposing to increase the number of homes by 59 from the current 561 to 620. The quantum of affordable accommodation increased by over 50% from 171 to 261. An increase from 36.2% to
46.2% by habitable room. The number of private homes has been reduced from 389 to 359.
Non-residential amendments include the relocation of the medical centre to the ground floor and relocating a space earmarked for a community centre to the south-east corner of the public square. Space for the supermarket has also been reduced to provide space suitable for a “convenience store,” and the space for its associated car parking has been removed. A slight increase in the space for a flexible town centre space from 965sqm to circa 1193sqm.
The application has chiefly been revised to ensure compliance with new fire safety regulations, the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, which were introduced in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire. Key requirements include that a protected lobby or corridor must be provided to offer a fire-sterile area for occupants to wait or evacuate safely. Buildings over 18 metres in height must have a second staircase, which also acts as an alternative escape route for occupants. The second stair can also function as a fire-fighting stair, requiring a width of at least 1100mm.
The advantage of increasing affordable homes is the generous grants on offer from the London Mayor. London Square has its own affordable housing arm, Square Roots, but is talking to the Clarion Housing Association, which already operates in Lee.
The firm intends to achieve the increase by reducing the amount of commercial space in the development and by adding extra storeys to the lower-rise blocks. There is no plan at the moment to increase the height of the 15-storey tower block on the Lee Green crossroads, but they may remove the planned basement floor.
Furthermore, the Applicant has partnered with a Registered Provider, Clarion Housing Association (“Clarion”),
who will deliver the affordable element of the scheme. The affordable housing offer has increased substantially compared to the existing consent and has been developed in accordance with Clarion’s specific requirements.
Plans are recommended for approval at Lewisham’s strategic planning committee on the evening of Tuesday, 18th November.
