MAYOR BREAKS GROUND FOR COMMUNITY FACILITES AND 182 HOMES AT PLAISTOW HUB

Mayor of Newham, Rokhsana Fiaz OBE, officially broke ground at Plaistow Hub on 4 June 2021. The development is providing 180 much needed homes and many new community facilities. The project delivered by Populo Living, Newham Council’s wholly owned housing company, will use the revenue generated to fund 112 affordable homes across the borough.

The mixed-use project, which is being constructed by Stratford based regeneration construction specialist Vistry Partnerships, will transform the area around Plaistow Underground Station.

Alongside the new homes the project is providing: a new library, neighbourhood centre, supermarket, gym and café. A new piazza will be built outside the station and improvements will be made to the local streetscape and connectivity will be improved.

Mayor of Newham Rokhsana Fiaz OBE said: “I am delighted to have officially kicked off construction on this exciting project which will benefit not just local people in Plaistow but the whole of Newham. As well as delivering new homes and state of the art community facilities for local people, Plaistow Hub is delivering 112 affordable homes across the borough for those on the council’s housing waiting list. I am pleased that this step forward is helping to meet the commitment I made when elected: to start the build of 1,000 new council-owned homes by March 2022.

Stuart Brodie, Divisional Managing Director for Vistry Partnerships London, also joined the site visit and commented: “I am delighted to be embarking on our first construction venture with Populo Living. This fantastic mixed-use scheme supports Newham Council’s ambition and vision to provide genuinely affordable homes and facilities for people in the local area and Plaistow as a whole.”

Curators and Researchers from V&A East were also in attendance. Georgia Haseldine, V&A Public Engagement Fellow, recently approached the site team at Plaistow Hub to source appropriate London clay which could be used to make bricks as part of the Brickfield Newham project, a collaboration between the Victoria & Albert Museum, Stratford Youth Zone, Brickfield and University of East London for Newham Heritage month. Brickfield Newham is a community research project that questions clay and its importance to the urban landscape by connecting people literally to the earth beneath their feet. Communities from across the borough have come together to make bricks, build and fire a kiln on a construction site in the Royal Docks. The bricks will be given to heritage collections and used in community gardens and projects across Newham.

Designed by award-winning architect, Pitman Tozer, construction works are expected to complete Summer 2023.