Rotherhithe New Road, Southwark, London

The existing property comprises a vacant cleared site of approximately 0.15 acres.

Previously occupied by a hand car wash and a single-storey retail unit, the buildings were demolished and site cleared in 2025 in readiness for future development.

The site is located in the London Borough of Southwark within the ‘Core Action Area’ in Canada Water’s Area Action Plan.

A resolution to grant planning permission was approved at Committee in February 2022, subject to the completion of a S106 agreement, under reference 19/AP/4455. The scheme was for the demolition of the existing buildings and construction of 12 storey building comprising ground floor commercial and 48 residential units above. Despite the resolution, the S106 Agreement was not completed due to the GLA raising a policy matter relating to the relocation of a former Tenant. The applicant and Local Authority did not agree a position with the GLA within the required post-resolution timeframe, resulting in the refusal of the application. The Tenant has subsequently vacated the property and all existing buildings on the site have been demolished.

A pre-application meeting was held with Southwark council in September 2025 which proposed a 15-storey Purpose-Built Student Accommodation(PBSA) with feedback from the council which supported the overarching principle of high-density, residential-led redevelopment on this site. While the formal written response was specifically tailored to a PBSA scheme at the applicant’s request, the meeting itself comprehensively explored alternative residential models. The council indicated support for the principle of co-living on the site, subject to a future scheme demonstrating compliance with Southwark Plan Policy P6. Further details of the pre-app including the written feedback and historic planning application are available upon request.