Council bids to prevent Notting Hill police station from becoming housing

Local authorities have hit back at plans to turn Notting Hill police station into private housing after the central London site went up for sale last year. Kensington and Chelsea Council has made a bid to buy the largely disused station from the Mayor’s Office of Policing and Crime (MOPAC), with plans to convert the site for community uses. Options include a new GP surgery, a police drop-in centre, facilities for adults with learning difficulties, a rented community space and affordable homes for key workers. However, marketing documents circulated by selling agent Knight Frank show the two options being proposed to investors are both for private apartments. Massing studies by Formation Architects identify either a 31- or 38-unit residential scheme, both involving retention of the main former police station building with redevelopment to the rear. Those schemes would extend to between 23,700 and 24,650 sq ft of net saleable area. The existing buildings on the site, which include the main former police station building, office block Woodfield House, and two external outbuildings, contain 16,600 sq ft net internal area. Nearly 3,000 people have signed a petition to stop those schemes coming to fruition after MOPAC announced plans to sell it last summer. The police station has operated only as a drop-in base for officers since 2017, but locals say the area still needs a physical police presence. The building is designated as an asset of community value, protected by policies in the council’s local plan. This means any developer would need to demonstrate continued social and community uses for the building to achieve planning permission. Deputy leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council Kim Taylor-Smith said: “This building is a community asset – it should stay that way. The last thing I want is to see it sold to the highest bidder to develop expensive apartments that are snapped up by investors. “Our plans include much-needed local services. We want to offer adults with learning disabilities residential and respite care here, near their families. That could be life-changing for people. “The area needs more GP facilities. We have planned space for that too and we’re keen to offer the police the opportunity to keep a home in Notting Hill on the site.” The move comes after the Chelsea police station was sold in 2015 to Mayfield Asset Management for £40m, before it was resold to a private UAE-based fund for around £50m the following year with plans to turn it into 32 apartments. To send feedback, e-mail alex.daniel@eg.co.uk or tweet @alexmdaniel or @EGPropertyNews Photos: Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea; HOK