Kensington and Chelsea Council has approved repairs to the Pembroke Road North Depot, with a target reopening date of June 2027, following a decision made at the Leadership Team meeting on 15 October 2025.

The decision follows a structural damage assessment detailed in the Pembroke Road North Depot Report and aims to restore the depot to full operational use. The project, with an indicative cost of £10.074m agreed in principle in April 2025, also includes creating additional vehicle parking capacity at the Pembroke Road South Depot to accommodate a shortfall of 31 vehicles1.

The Leadership Team considered a report recommending the project, which includes repairing the link bridge at Pembroke Road North Depot and undertaking associated works at Pembroke Road South Depot to provide additional vehicle parking. The Pembroke Road North Depot Report detailed the plans.

The programme timeline estimates occupation of the Pembroke Road depots in June 2027, meaning the continuation of the temporary depot arrangements are required until this time.

These 'temporary depot arrangements' involve the fleet and workers being temporarily relocated to various sites, incurring additional costs to the council for utilities and service charges. The closure of the depot since late 2023 has disrupted operations, with the fleet and workers temporarily relocated to various sites at significant financial cost to the council.

Several options were considered by the Leadership Team:

  • Repair Pembroke Road North Depot including the link bridge, and associated works at Pembroke Road South Depot to create additional depot vehicle parking capacity
  • Do nothing, with Pembroke Road North Depot and the link bridge remaining closed
  • Purchase alternative site for the location of depot to house the returning fleet.
  • Demolish Pembroke Road North and redevelop with a new depot building to contain the whole fleet

The recommendation to repair Pembroke Road North Depot was made following an assessment of the structural damage identified in building condition surveys.

The central location of the depot is ideal for operational waste service delivery, and the closure has created uncertainty and disruption for residents of Broadwood Terrace and Chesterton Square due to the required footbridge closure on safety grounds. The report aims to reopen the residential link bridge between Broadwood Terrace and Chesterton Square.

To support efficient delivery of the Pembroke Road North and Pembroke South sites, the Leadership Team recommended delegating authority to the Executive Director of Housing and Social Investment, following consultation with the Lead Member for Property, Parks and Leisure Services, to approve:

  • (i) The business cases for the Pembroke Road North and South Depot schemes, and their budgets for addition to the Capital Programme,
  • (ii) The procurement strategy for the appointment of works contractor(s) for both Pembroke Road North and South,
  • (iii) The award of contract for the works contractor(s) for Pembroke Road North and South following the procurement exercise, and
  • (iv) Any budget variation in the contract up to but not exceeding the amount specified in the exempt from publication (Part B) appendix to this report.

This delegation is recommended to support efficient delivery of the Pembroke Road North and Pembroke South sites and to comply with the Council's Constitution (Part 4, section 1).

  1. The vehicle capacity assessment prepared by Calford Seaden has confirmed that Pembroke Road North Depot could accommodate 43 vehicles on completion of the repair works. This will leave a shortfall of space for 31 vehicles, so additional capacity to house these vehicles is required.