Havering Council’s strategic planning committee is set to review proposals for the relocation of the Havering Islamic Cultural Centre (HICC) to South Street at its meeting on Thursday (November 13).
While the plans are still at pre-application stage, the developer is expected to make a presentation to the committee, outlining the scheme and consultation responses.
A report published ahead of the meeting reveals that the proposal has already been the subject of four pre-application meetings with planning officers, as well as being presented to the council’s quality review panel in September.
This panel “strongly supports the provision of a new mosque in Romford”, according to the report, but has concerns about whether the site can accommodate the numbers of worshippers planned.
The proposed new site is 222-226 South Street – previously occupied by Brickyard Bar and Smokey’s Shack – with plans to accommodate up to 1,200 worshippers there.
The panel said that “further analysis” is needed to demonstrate that this “highly constrained” site can cope with the expected volume of users.
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It added that a “more detailed” assessment is needed to understand how people will travel to and from the mosque.
The report also revealed that the female entrance to the mosque is proposed to be “furthest away from the street”; the panel urged this to be reconsidered ensure both male and female entrances are of “equal quality”.
In response, HICC said this approach would provide a “quieter, more tranquil setting away from road noise” with “enhanced privacy”.
As a formal planning application is yet to be submitted for the scheme, it could still evolve before this submission.
READ MORE: Havering Mosque, South Street Romford plans: What we know
In 2023 an Instagram account was set up under the name of Ava Grill London, teasing the launch of a lounge and grill on the South Street site planned for the mosque.
The last post shared by the restaurant, reportedly specialising in the “art of steak, and the craft of mocktails”, was from November 2023.
The progress at the site is unclear, with three active job vacancies spotted on recruitment website Job Today that were listed in August.
Pictures of the venue from September 26 show boarding in some windows and others obscured by marketing adverts.
HICC – set to rebrand as Havering Mosque as part of the proposed relocation – currently operates from a site in Waterloo Road, however it was forced to negotiate after the council acquired the site under a compulsory purchase order (CPO).
The CPO was made as part of the Bridge Close regeneration scheme, which is set to see more than 1,000 new homes introduced to the area.
Earlier this month, the council approved plans to allow HICC to continue operating in Waterloo Road until April 2027.
