Lambeth Council's Planning Applications Committee is considering a proposal to redevelop 36-46 Albert Embankment with two linked towers for student accommodation, a cafe, and flexible incubator space, alongside the refurbishment of Vintage House. The committee met on Tuesday 1 July 2025 to discuss the application.
The proposed development includes 769 student rooms with 897 beds, a cafe, flexible incubator/cultural space, and the retention and refurbishment of Vintage House for office use. The applicant is aiming for Passivhaus1 certification and a BREEAM2 rating of Outstanding for the student accommodation.
A key point of discussion is the provision of affordable housing. While the application included a proposal for 35% of the student accommodation to be affordable, the applicant revised this to 20% affordable student accommodation and an £8.02 million payment in lieu (PiL) to support conventional affordable housing in Lambeth.
The Greater London Authority (GLA) and Historic England have raised concerns about potential harm to the Westminster World Heritage Site due to the development's scale. The Public reports pack noted these concerns. Despite these concerns, the committee is weighing the public benefits of the scheme against any potential harm.
The Planning Applications Committee also approved the minutes from prior meetings, including approvals for development at Brockwell Park and Myatt's Fields Park, as detailed in the PAC Minutes 6 May 2025 final and PAC Minutes 03 June 2025 respectively.
The committee members present at the meeting included Councillor Joanne Simpson, Councillor Malcolm Clark, Councillor Scott Ainslie, Councillor Martin Bailey, Councillor Diogo Costa, Councillor Saleha Jaffer, and Councillor Emma Nye.