Brent Council's Planning Committee has deferred a decision on a proposed housing development at the Wembley Centre for Health & Care due to significant concerns regarding affordable housing provision, parking, and community space.
The committee met on Thursday, July 2, 2026, and unanimously resolved to defer the application for the demolition of existing buildings on Chaplin Road to allow for the construction of 108 residential units. The deferral is intended to allow for a further report to address issues including insufficient affordable housing, inadequate on-site parking and potential congestion, a lack of community space, insufficient play space for older children, and a shortage of family-sized housing.
Affordable Housing Concerns
The proposed development includes 11 affordable housing units, equating to 10% of the total units and 10.2% by habitable room. This falls short of the council's target of 70% for social rent or London Affordable Rent (LAR) and 30% for intermediate housing, with a minimum of 50% affordable housing on-site for public land developments. Despite not meeting the 70:30 split, all 11 affordable homes are proposed as London Affordable Rent, which the council considers acceptable as it exceeds the minimum policy expectation for low-cost rented homes.
Parking and Congestion
Concerns were also raised about parking. The original proposal included 12 car parking spaces. However, Brent Council's policy allows for a maximum of 0.5 spaces per dwelling in this location due to its high Public Transport Accessibility Level (PTAL) of 4, which would permit up to 54 parking spaces. The proposed 12 spaces are therefore within the maximum allowance, but the committee is seeking further clarity on potential congestion.
Community and Play Space
The plans have been criticised for a lack of community space, with residents objecting to its absence. The proposed development also includes play space for younger children but, due to space constraints, no dedicated area for older children (12+), such as for outdoor sports or kickabout space. While Barham Park is within walking distance and could partially meet this need, the council is seeking a financial contribution to improve existing open spaces for public benefit.
Family-Sized Housing and Amenity Impact
The council defines 'family-sized housing' as three-bedroom or greater dwellings, with a policy target of one in four new homes being family-sized. The proposal includes 26 family-sized homes, representing 24% of all dwellings, which is marginally below the Local Plan BH6 policy target.
Members also cited concerns about the impact on neighbouring amenity, including loss of daylight. For the property at 15 Fairview Avenue, the development would result in some adverse daylight effects, primarily affecting a small kitchen window. While mitigation measures were considered, including the window's small size and the living room's dual aspect, the reduction in visible sky component (VSC) falls below BRE's recommended retained level.
Site History
The Wembley Centre for Health & Care site currently comprises vacant former hospital buildings and a former ambulance station. These buildings ceased frontline medical, clinical, and healthcare services in 2000 and have not supported public-facing medical use for over 25 years. The NHS has confirmed the buildings are surplus to requirements. The proposed demolition is for these vacant structures, and no current services operating from the specific buildings to be demolished were mentioned in the report.
The committee indicated a potential refusal based on these grounds.
Further details on the planning committee meeting can be found in the Public reports pack and the Agenda frontsheet.
