AHMM’s Westminster homeless facility approved

Allford Hall Monaghan Morris has received planning permission for a 20-storey build-to-rent tower and a nine-storey homeless facility in Royal Oak, west LondonHomeless charity St Mungo’s – working with developer Stories – will demolish its existing facility on Harrow Road and replace it with a 45 short-stay beds, 11 homes for mid-term accommodation and space for health, wellbeing, employment and intensive support for those who need it.The scheme will be financed by the construction of a residential tower on the site, featuring 98 build-to-rent homes. The tower will measure 7,500m2 – the majority of the 9,800m2 provided across the development – but will feature no family-sized homes and just 14 affordable homes.Planners at Westminster Council acknowledged the site was not considered suitable for a tall building and noted that the proposed tower would harm a range of nearby heritage assets and conservation areas.However, they recommended the scheme for approval, pointing out the strong public benefit from the re-provision of a hostel facility and creation of new homes – as well as ‘the replacement of an architecturally harmful building with a well-designed and high-quality replacement’.The Greater London Authority said the scheme did not comply with the London Plan and pointed out that it would only provide between 16 and 21 per cent net increase in affordable housing by floor space, therefore falling short of the 50 per cent expected on publicly-owned land.Councillors on Westminster’s Planning (Major Applications) Sub-Committee approved the application on Tuesday evening (20 September) – but expressed concern about the development’s height and lack of affordable homes.Conservative councillor Paul Fish highlighted the local authority’s policy of 35 per cent affordable housing and that ‘viability should not be used to hold committees like this one to ransom when a scheme is inherently unviable’.Fish voted to approve the scheme but said: ‘If it weren’t for St Mungo’s being the applicant, I would refuse this.’Labour councillor Ruth Bush, chair of the subcommittee, abstained on the vote. She said: ‘I am very disappointed that St Mungo’s, in all of its worthiness, has approached the finance of this in the way it has. It seems wrong to say “we are going to breach this [planning policy], breach that [policy] and breach the other because we are worthy”.‘There are other ways of doing this. It’s difficult but it’s possible. It is totally exceptional to have this many policy breaches – including the height of these buildings – and I’m not even sure its outweighed by benefits gained. But it can only be justified by the benefits gained.’AHMM has been contacted for comment.Architect’s view (first published November 2021)We are delighted to be working with Stories and St Mungo’s on the design and delivery of a new home for the homeless, combined with mixed-tenure apartments, on a single prominent site adjacent to the Westway.Two related but distinct housing forms are built around a shared landscaped courtyard and framed by much enhanced façades that address the busy Harrow Road and the lively suite of sports courts beneath the Westway.A single architectural identity unites the two uses with a simple warm brick palette and robust concrete details accentuating the building form.The stepped plan, developed through analysis of aspect and privacy for habitable rooms, generates massing that is then sculpted into multiple slender vertical elements to optimise daylighting.Deep splayed window apertures reveal well-lit interiors and welcoming, non-institutional rooms designed to a high specification in accordance with St Mungo’s Psychologically Informed Environments Design Guide.Will Lee, director, Allford Hall Monaghan Morris