A London developer has been granted the go-ahead by the Secretary of State for a £250 million housing development on Manor Road, Richmond.

The 1.8-hectare ‘urban-village’ will provide 453 apartments and penthouses plus retail, community and office spaces. Of these homes, 173 will be affordable.

Developer Avanton acquired the Homebase site in 2018 although planning for the scheme was initially refused by Richmond Council.

Your Local Guardian: The 'urban village' will replace the former homebase site on Manor RdThe 'urban village' will replace the former homebase site on Manor Rd

After an intervention from London Mayor Sadiq Khan, permission was granted in October 2020.

The scheme was then referred to housing secretary, Robert Jenrick, who has confirmed the application will not be called in.

Therefore, approval stands, and the development can go-ahead.

Mr Kahn said: “This site is well-connected, under-utilised, previously developed land that is exactly the kind of site we need to intensify if we are to develop in a sustainable manner, protect the green belt, and deliver the homes Londoners need”.

Existing buildings will be replaced by four structures between four and 11 storeys tall.

A spokesperson for the developer said:

“Avanton’s new urban-village will create a collection of high-quality private sale homes and will also have a transformative effect on access to affordable housing in Richmond, providing the same as the total number of new affordable homes that have been delivered in the entire borough over the last three years.”

“The highly sustainable design blends high quality buildings with extensive landscaping and a linear pocket-park. Construction of the project will commence in summer 2021 and take 30 months.”