Greenwich Quay: More towers for hundreds of students could come to Deptford Creek

Plans for two more big student housing blocks next to Deptford Creek have been submitted to Greenwich Council – just weeks after councillors approved a major development from the same company.

Your Tribe and the investment company Redington Capital want to build blocks of 15 and 20 storeys on the Deptford side of the creek, on land between the low-rise Millennium Quay development and Creek Road. The development, which would face the creek, would house 700 student rooms. 

Last month Your Tribe was given permission for 414 rooms in a 27-storey tower at Ravensbourne Wharf, on the other side of the creek. 

The plot of land, historically known as Crown Wharf, was a scrapyard until the 1990s and later became a office development called Greenwich Quay, some of which has been converted into housing.

A number of tall blocks and large developments have already been approved along the creek by councillors in both Greenwich and Lewisham, with some already built such as the 23-storey Union Wharf tower on the other side of Creek Road.

The area along the creek has been earmarked for development by City Hall for the past two decades.  Plans for 29-storey and 26-storey blocks at Creekside Village East, off Copperas Street, were backed by Lewisham councillors in November 2020, although the paperwork has not yet been signed off and the site remains empty. 

But there have also been anxieties about the effect of the towers on heritage sites in Deptford and especially Greenwich, which has world heritage site status – something Liverpool lost two years ago because of the pace of development in the area.  

While approving the 27-storey Ravensbourne Wharf block four weeks ago, Gary Dillion, Greenwich’s chair of planning, suggested the borough needed to think about “where we draw the line” on tall buildings so close to the town centre.

But in documents filed with the planning application, Your Tribe says that the group of towers along the creek “creates a transitional point between Deptford and Greenwich”. It adds: “A development to match these characteristics would knit together the urban fabric and become a catalyst for Creek Road.”

Despite the failure of the previous development on the site, office space will be included in the new scheme, while 35 per cent of the accommodation will be “affordable”, which under City Hall rules is defined as up to 55 per cent of an annual student maintenance loan. 

The proposal is likely to face fierce opposition from neighbours, particularly in Millennium Quay. Locals were only consulted about the scheme last month – and an exhibition about the proposals was disrupted when the consultation team could not get into the original venue because the lock was broken, other documents submitted to the council say.  

Of 32 responses to its consultation, 18 were hostile to the idea. When respondents were asked a separate question about whether they welcomed student accommodation, 23 were opposed. 

The area between Greenwich and Deptford town centres has long been a hotspot for student accommodation, with halls along the west end of Creek Road and above Cutty Sark DLR station. 

Some 230 rooms are planned at the Art Hub site at the south end of Creekside, while the Ravensbourne Wharf tower is due to include 414 rooms. 

Your Tribe hopes to finish the new building by September 2028. Full details about the plans can be found on the Greenwich Council planning website, where comments can also be left.