The Hickman Avenue tower will comprise of 87 homes, 35 of which will be ‘affordable’, reports Sebastian Mann, Local Democracy Reporter

A mockup of how the flats are expected to look, Credit: Hickman Estates

A block of flats up to eight storeys tall in Chingford has been approved by Waltham Forest Council.

The Hickman Avenue tower will comprise of 87 homes, 35 of which will be ‘affordable’ housing aimed at poorer buyers.

It will be split into two parts: an eight-storey block connected to a six-storey block, complete with a rooftop garden.

Waltham Forest councillors called it a “sustainable” development, though residents living nearby said it would constitute overdevelopment.

At a planning committee meeting last night (3rd June), councillor Jenny Gray said it was “good to see an application for something that isn’t student housing, which hasn’t happened much recently”.

She said building new homes in the borough was important “in the midst of a housing crisis”.

A total of 35 formal objections were lodged against the plans after they were shown to the public in 2024.

Residents called the height “excessive” and said the tower would have a detrimental impact on the skyline, while also expressing concern about a potential loss of privacy.

A representative for developers Hickman Estates told the committee the plans had been developed through discussions with the council’s planning department.

He said plans to fill the bottom floor with shops had been scrapped in favour of building eight additional homes, which has “undoubtedly resulted in a more successful scheme”.

However, Conservative councillor Catherine Saumarez criticised the subsequent loss of employment space, which she said would harm the local workforce.

Fellow Tory councillor John Moss was the only committee member to vote against it. The other five Labour councillors voted to approve the plan.

In order to make room for the new homes, Hickman Estates will tear down the existing two-storey office building and other fixtures for a car park. There will only be room for blue-badge parking at the new block, but there will be space for bicycles.

The area is surrounded by a large Tesco Superstore and residential developments to the south, east and west between four and 13 storeys tall.

The site as it is currently, Credit: Hickman Estates

In response to the formal objections, the council’s planning department – who recommended the plans for approval to the committee – said: “The proposal is surrounded by existing built development so would not lead to any significant loss of views of open spaces.”

Cllr Gray said she felt it “did fit in” with the landscape.

Of that, £87,000 will go towards walking and cycling routes, and a further £78,078 will be put into the council’s ‘carbon offset fund’ aimed at reducing emissions elsewhere in Waltham Forest.

Just shy of £19,000 has been earmarked for improving other children’s playgrounds in the borough, to make up for the absence of one in the plans.

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