Works began to provide 138 new homes in Chippenham Road in July this year and last Wednesday (October 15) our reporter headed down to the site to see what progress had been made.
Demolition works now appear to be complete and the site, surrounded by a blue fence perimeter, is barren apart from three or four substantial piles of rubble.
A few traffic cones could also be seen scattered across the land.
From the lowest viewing point in Chippenham Road, the scale of the piles of debris can really be felt – they’re huge.
I also climbed uphill to see the full demolition site from Kings Lynn Drive where I was able to mentally picture just how the redeveloped housing may fit into the space.
Drone images taken in August showed the majority of the work had been completed with half a building still standing.
Two diggers and several skips were also pictured but I did not see any last week.
According to a Havering Council statement in July, crews would have used ‘concrete nibblers’ – a crushing method rather than an impact-based one – to reduce noise and vibration during demolition works.
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Environmental monitoring would have also taken place throughout the process, with the council saying work would stop immediately if thresholds are breached.
Dust would have been managed using protective screening.
The works marked the start of phase two of Havering Council and Wates Residential’s joint 12 Estates Regeneration Programme, which the Chippenham Road project is part of.
Councillor Ray Morgon, leader of Havering Council, previously said: “It’s exciting to see the latest phase of this new development first-hand as the developers continue to work towards delivering more high-quality homes in the borough.
“There is an air of excitement as we gradually see the area being transformed to provide much-needed affordable homes, in a way that will help bring neighbours together and support their wellbeing.”
The new development includes one to four-bedroom homes, with a portion designed for wheelchair users and people with other disabilities.
Plans also feature shared green spaces, community gardens, play areas, and allotments.
The 12 Estates scheme aims to provide 3,500 new homes in total and includes the Waterloo Estate project and the already completed Park Rise development.
