Havering Council’s strategic planning committee are expected to approve plans to demolish The Alderman, in Chippenham Road, when it meets on Thursday (February 27).
This is according to a council report published ahead of the meeting – which also reveals that The Alderman will be moved to a temporary space in the Harold Hill District Centre and then to a new permanent home once the area is redeveloped.
The report details the recommendation “that the committee resolve to grant planning permission”, subject to demolition not starting “until a suitable space in the existing Harold Hill District Centre as an interim replacement facility for The Alderman has been identified”.
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It added that a “fit-out schedule” and a “marketing and lease strategy” will need to be submitted for the temporary replacement space.
Eventually, “a permanent replacement provision for a public house within the redevelopment of the Harold Hill District Centre” will need to be provided, the report said.
The Alderman has been earmarked for demolition since August 2023, but has continued to serve its customers since the plans were submitted.
It has been running since the 1960s and has a “strong customer base of about 80-100 regulars who visit weekly”, according to the council report.
Plans to bulldoze the venue form part of the regeneration of Harold Hill town centre, including the proposal for 138 new affordable homes in between Chippenham Road, Kings Lynn Drive and Dartfields – which is also set to be discussed at the planning committee meeting on Thursday.
