Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing wants to provide 14 additional flats for social rent on the site, reports Richard Cubitt

The existing building in Ordnance Road and (inset) plans for its redevelopment submitted by MTVH (credit BM3)

A housing association has submitted plans for the redevelopment of a block of flats in Enfield Lock to provide more affordable homes.

Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing (MTVH), which owns the current site at 304-322 Ordnance Road, wants to demolish the existing three-storey apartment block and replace it with a larger six-storey scheme.

The current building consists of ten flats, but the new development will include 24, all of which will be available for social rent.

Plans recently submitted to Enfield Council state that MTVH “seeks to redevelop the land to maximise the potential of the site and create a high-quality contemporary building”.

The design for the building, from architecture firm BM3, will include a mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments, with on-site parking and a communal garden.

MTVH states in its plans that the existing block of flats “is considered to be near the end of its life” due to significant repairs needed because of problems with the building fabric. MTVH also cites concerns over the security of the building layout.

The Ordnance Road site is next to the Small River Lea and is within walking distance of Enfield Lock Station.

The design of the new scheme is described by MTVH as drawing “from the local character of the area by reinterpreting architectural details of existing buildings in a contemporary way”.

MTVH added that the new building’s encroachment on the Small River Lea was only minimally different from the current building.

Although the existing building is currently occupied by MTVH residents, a spokesperson for the housing association said: “The property […] is being regenerated to create a new, high-quality, warm and secure building for the existing social rented tenants to return to, alongside improved communal and play spaces.

“It will also provide an additional 14 new, much-needed social rent homes to help alleviate the housing crisis in Enfield where over 5,000 people are on the council’s waiting list.

“We’ve consulted with residents to help to shape this regeneration project. While the rebuild is taking place, residents will be temporarily rehoused, and all existing socially rented tenants will be able to move into their new and improved homes on the same site once complete.

“We are providing full support to ensure that their housing needs are met while their homes are transformed.

“As a not-for-profit provider of affordable housing, it is our priority that residents have access to a decent home and the chance to live well. We will continue to work with residents at Ordnance Road and the wider community to ensure our proposed regeneration meets their needs and expectations, benefiting current social tenants and those in housing need across Enfield.”

For more information about the plans, enter reference number 26/00783/FUL through the council’s planning portal.

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