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Old Kent Road – Local Development Study
2016 – 2017

Date
2016 – 2017

Project Name
Old Kent Road Local Development Study

Client
Southwark Council

Category
Urban | Public | Research

In October 2016 Fluid were appointed by Southwark Council to develop a Local Development Framework for an area of Old Kent Road (OKR14), situated between Old Kent Road, Glengall Road and Latona Road, east of Burgess Park.

The purpose of the Local Development Study (LDS) was to explore and test the principles identified in the Old Kent Road Area Action Plan and the Place-making Study in more detail, working with the landowners and their agents / consultants for the OKR14 site. The LDS is part of the evidence base, which helps underpin the AAP, and will inform a future supplementary planning document and the next version of the AAP (Autumn 2017).

The overarching aim to create a well-connected neighbourhood with a significant number of homes, as well as other uses including employment, high street and town centre and community uses. The area will have a strong and clear identity as a neighbourhood to live and work in, framing a fantastic new linear park, public open space and route. It will offer a range of housing options for residents of different ages and circumstances, and the social and commercial facilities and infrastructure to support a stable community, whilst a range of workspaces will allow new and existing business to grow and flourish.

The Local Development Study (LDS) looked to address the following objectives:

  • Establish a new linear park connecting Burgess Park to South Bermondsey referencing the former Surrey Canal route
  • Support and extend the existing creative business cluster
  • Form new north-south pedestrian and cycle connectivity
  • Improve the public realm and high street offer on Old Kent Road
  • New streets and routes to provide access to Old Kent Road for new and existing surrounding residents
  • Take into account the future Bakerloo Line extension

The strategic layout outlined in the draft AAP was refined by the LDS. This involved drawing a more detailed understanding of land ownership, technical constraints, the movement network, and aspirations for heritage and built character, as well as land use distribution.

A key challenge was to develop the framework whilst being informed by land ownership. The LDS helped to co-ordinate the current developer activity across 7 landowner sites in the OKR14 Composite Site, and the aspirations of the client for the wider OKR opportunity area. Fluid held a number of workshops and one to one meetings with the landowners, and their design teams, to deliver an exemplary development.

The urban block structure aims to avoid piecemeal development ensuring that sites can be delivered in a way that is coordinated and which contributes to the wider vision for the area. The framework plan addresses the distribution and amount of public space, informed by a need to balance provision between land ownerships.

“The design quality was very good. Not easy given advanced state of proposals on one site. However, good analysis around character, vision and public realm associated with Linear Park.” – Tim Cutts LB Southwark, February 2017