Westminster City Council holds topping out ceremony for new 52-home affordable housing scheme overlooking Battersea Power Station

Full scheme comprises 34 council homes for social rent and 18 for other affordable tenures.
The scheme will provide a net housing uplift of 21 homes.
New units in Darwin House will be twice the size of existing ones.
The scheme is the first new housing delivered on Churchill Gardens Estate in 50 years.
New units have been designed with Passivhaus principles in mind.
Westminster City Council has been pursuing an accelerated programme of housebuilding at the heart of the capital.

Local residents in the heart of Westminster are set to benefit from 52 new affordable homes overlooking the newly regenerated Battersea Power Station.

Residents from the Churchill Gardens Estate in Pimlico were invited to a ‘topping out’ ceremony earlier this month for Phase One of the scheme, which will provide 34 modern supported housing units for older residents.

In all, the development will provide a net uplift of 21 new units of accommodation within Westminster’s Churchill Gardens Conservation Area, on the banks of the River Thames, overlooking the iconic Battersea Power Station.

The development is on the site of the former Balmoral Castle Pub and the existing Darwin House building. The new units are self-contained flats for residents aged over 60 and will be twice the size of the accommodation at the existing Darwin House. They include communal facilities, offer social activities and have guest rooms for visitors.

The new homes meet Westminster’s Housing our Ageing Population Panel for Innovation (HAPPI) standard, which helps architects design homes to meet the individual needs of residents in this type of housing.

The new buildings have been also designed with the council’s net zero targets in mind and include triple glazing, air source heat pumps, in-built shading and solar panels.

Phase Two will see the construction of Block B which will provide 18 general needs affordable housing units for London Living Rent. Both blocks will benefit from access to landscaped green space in the Churchill Gardens Estate.

The scheme delivers on Westminster’s commitment to delivering truly affordable housing, which forms part of the ‘Fairer Westminster’ strategy – the council’s vision for building a city that supports and celebrates all of its communities.

The council is currently embarking on a major affordable housebuilding drive and this year expects to complete 418 homes, of which 340 will be affordable – largely for social rent.

Phase One of the Darwin House development was delivered in partnership with Wates Residential, who took possession of the site in June 2022.

Liza Begum, Councillor for Pimlico South and Cabinet Member for Housing Services, said: “We are delighted to see our ambitious plans for the new Darwin House development reach this important milestone.

“We are proud that, working along with members of the construction liaison group and residents, we have been able to bring forward a scheme that will deliver much needed affordable homes in the borough.

“We are also really pleased that the first people to benefit from these high-quality, energy efficient homes will be the residents of the original Darwin House.”

Nick Williams, Regional Managing Director, Wates Residential, said: “We are pleased to be celebrating this important milestone with Westminster City Council, in the regeneration of the Churchill Gardens community. “This development will provide not just new, comfortable, affordable homes but also significantly benefit the local community by supporting economic growth, promoting opportunities for employment, and creating a safer, brighter future for residents.”