Three under-threat housing estates in south London are set to be spared demolition, in a dramatic U-turn that could end years of uncertainty for residents.
Lambeth Council’s cabinet is expected to reverse the plans at a meeting on Wednesday, taking Central Hill in Crystal Palace and Cressingham Gardens near Brixton off the estate redevelopment programme.
According to a report presented to the cabinet, council officers found comprehensive redevelopment of both Central Hill and Cressingham Gardens to be financially unviable. It would have involved bulldozing both estates and rebuilding them.
Knights Walk in Kennington will also be removed from the New Homes Hexagon Portfolio — a major £250 million public and private sector partnership plan to build around 500 new homes across the borough. The completed first phase of Knights Walk has reportedly left the second phase of the site in limbo.
Under the proposals, Central Hill and Cressingham Gardens are to be taken off the redevelopment programme entirely, with the £250m scheme redirected to renovating existing homes instead.
The shift reflects a growing reality for London councils: with construction costs soaring and borrowing expensive, the demolition-and-rebuild model that once promised new homes no longer stacks up financially.
Residents of the three estates have lived under the shadow of demolition for years, with uncertainty over their homes and their community’s future.
The cabinet’s decision, expected on Wednesday, would mark a significant moment in south London’s housing story — and a rare win for campaigners who have long argued that renovation, not demolition, is the answer.
Lambeth’s housing challenges mirror those across the capital. Westminster Council is cutting 520 jobs to bridge a £160m funding gap, while housing decisions in Barnet have also divided opinion.
The council is expected to confirm the reversal formally following Wednesday’s cabinet meeting.
