Aberfeldy New Masterplan, Tower Hamlets, London – For EcoWorld London and Poplar Harca and with Levitt Bernstein, Morris + Company, ZCD Architects and LDA Design

Aberfeldy New Masterplan is a 20-year regeneration scheme in East London developed by a joint venture between EcoWorld London and housing association Poplar HARCA. A new masterplan was submitted in 2021 which focuses on stakeholder engagement and the community being able to co-design. It will bring 1,600 homes of all tenures, wide green spaces and road, cycle and pedestrian connections.

Where is the project located?
Aberfeldy Village, London E14 0ND
 
Who is the developer/client of the project?
EcoWorld London
 
Who is on the project team? (designer, consultants, etc)
ZCD ARCHITECTS LTD, LDA Design, Levitt Bernstein and Morris+Company.

Aberfeldy Village is an ambitious, 20-year regeneration scheme in East London by a joint venture between EcoWorld London and housing association Poplar HARCA. Community and stakeholder engagement has always been at the heart of this enormous scheme. 

The first half is nearing completion and as it progressed, it became evident that there was scope to do even more and regenerate more areas. A new masterplan was submitted in October 2021 that is far more ambitious, derived largely from stakeholder engagement and co-design with the community. As well as 1,600 new homes of all tenures, it will bring in further strategic elements to deliver greater prosperity to those who live in the area, such as road, cycle and pedestrian connections and wide green spaces.

The regeneration of Aberfeldy Village started more than a decade ago and a lot has changed. Priorities such as sustainability have come to the fore, as well as a greater need to support communities. With such an evolving background, engagement with stakeholders has been fundamental to shaping how the new masterplan for Aberfeldy Village aims to improve not only the place itself, but the economic and social wellbeing of the community who has lived there for generations. As well as homes, the plans will deliver shops, workspaces, a community centre and a mosque.

 
Tell us what you did, and how you did it. What was your approach in talking to the community

To create the new masterplan, the joint venture has been carrying out a two-year consultation. The residents’ steering group has been meeting the design team frequently since 2020, including holding co-design workshops. Many workshops, presentations and surveys have been held with different groups, both virtual and in person. For example, between June to July 2020, a Planning for Real consultation engaged 280 residents, generating more than 2,500 ideas. Our pioneering youth engagement work included a co-design exercise with 100 pupils from Culloden Primary School to create a Young Person’s Manifesto. 

Due to the pandemic and lockdowns, we had to adapt our approach to be ‘at a distance’. For example, we sent interactive consultations packs to every household and increased our use of online meetings to keep everyone up to date and make sure everyone could make their voice heard. We set up a dedicated online consultation hub, with information and surveys, and held online ‘meet the team’ webinars which were advertised on Facebook and Instagram.

Our efforts clearly worked. In an October 2020 ballot, the new vision for Aberfeldy Village received support from 93% of resident respondents from a turnout of 91%, which demonstrates the incredibly high level of engagement achieved. From July to September 2021, a public consultation was held to feed directly into the planning application including sending 5,000 flyers to local businesses and residents. Significant efforts were put into engaging people with disabilities or who have little knowledge of the planning system, including translating materials.
 
How were the results of the community engagement incorporated into decision making? Have you continued the conversation? Will the community stay involved?

The new masterplan created from community engagement addresses how the physicality of the area is holding residents back. The location and connections currently make residents feel physically shut off, bordered by both the A12 and A13 roads. New cycling and walking routes are planned to create safer, more attractive routes not only through the estate but to the surrounding area, including a pedestrian underpass. A “green corridor” for walking and cycling will connect Highland Place within Aberfeldy Village to other nearby open spaces in East London. These parks will provide safe places for communities to enjoy, coupled with shops and workspaces that will provide opportunities and create places to engage with other residents. 

These connectively improvements have been shaped by feedback from residents who currently live in the neighbourhood. They told the project and design team that they want greater connectivity, improved safety for all residents, including places for children to play, and better spaces and facilities on their doorsteps. This is exactly what the masterplan will deliver: a “15-minute neighbourhood” with everything they need to prosper, connected safely to East London. Residents also called for modern new homes that are affordable, secure, spacious and well built – all priorities for the new homes planned.

Engagement will continue right through the planning process, including through the residents’ steering group which continues to meet. Assuming planning is approved, the LLP will continue to engage with the community with similar consultations through detailed design and construction to ensure their needs are prioritised.
 
Please provide any evidence or data that highlight your environmental or social impacts and your sustainability approach. 

The proposals have been strongly supported by the local community, with 88% strongly supporting or supporting the ambitions and principles of the masterplan in the second round of consultation undertaken this summer. Respondents have recognised and stated that the masterplan will help tackle some of the existing socioeconomic challenges facing the area, namely a chronic shortage of good quality and affordable housing, poor connections on and off the estate, and fear of crime. 

Sustainability has been a core focus of the entire Aberfeldy Village regeneration project, even more so with the new masterplan. Promoting a car-free lifestyle has become even more important in the last decade since the regeneration project first began. For example, in September 2021 the joint venture launched a scheme to allow residents to loan bikes for free. The aim is to overcome barriers to riding bikes that might exist within the community.

Measures have been taken throughout the whole scheme to limit carbon emissions and prioritise ecology. For example, biodiversity in the area that has already been developed has improved through the creation of the new public park, East India Green. Rainwater retention onsite has reduced the flood risk from the River Lea and all homes have met the Code for Sustainable Homes level 4. Both green and brown roofs have been used, as well as photovoltaic panels. The development also benefits from a site-wide energy centre, which significantly improves the energy efficiency of homes compared to the stock demolished.