Largest Royal Borough of Greenwich social housing scheme wins Housing Design Award

Kidbrooke Park Road North, the first phase of a 452-home social housing development, has won a prestigious Housing Design Award.

The award-winning scheme consists of 122 one, two and three bedroom carbon neutral apartments and maisonettes, 12 of which are wheelchair adapted.

Also included are a new nursery, extensive landscaping with 69 newly planted trees, children’s play area and an innovative sustainable energy centre.

To the south of the site a second phase of development is currently underway. Once complete, it will provide a further 330 homes, along with retail space, landscaping and more tree planting.

Councillor Anthony Okereke, Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, said: 

“This prestigious award win for our largest social housing development is a fantastic endorsement of the 1,750 council homes we’re creating with the Housing Our Greenwich programme.

It also shows how effective councils can be at delivering the truly affordable, high quality homes needed to tackle the housing crisis.

We are committed to making sure that everyone in our borough has access to a safe and secure home, and Kidbrooke Park Road highlights how we are making good on that commitment, with over 450 homes for social rent to local people.

We hope this recognition by the Housing Design Awards will inspire other local authorities to follow our example, by building homes that everyone can afford."

The Housing Design Awards were started in 1948 by Nye Bevan in the same sitting of Parliament which launched the NHS, making them the longest-running housing awards in the country.

Kidbrooke Park Road North was designed by HTA Design and built by Durkan Homes, with Blakeney Leigh acting as employer’s agent.

Housing Design Awards Judges recognised the ambition of the 100% social housing scheme, as well as the quality of its design, with blocks arranged to maximise daylight and ventilation, using an efficient layout to simplify construction and reduce costs.

Standardised floor plans made the building process faster, with less waste and emissions produced as a result. 

Judges also noted the extensive work that was carried out in preparing the site, including the removal of soil to a depth of two metres across the whole area before development could begin.

Tenants moved into Kidbrooke Park Road North in 2024, with Kidbrooke Park Road South due for completion in 2026.