Members are invited to disclose any interest in any of the items on the agenda at this point in the meeting.

Members may still disclose any interest in an item at any time prior to the consideration of the matter.

Councillor Tim Ryan declared an interest in the following matters before the Committee:

1.    Crowlands Golf Centre, Rush Green

2.    Former Debenham Store

To approve as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 11 December 2025 and to authorise the Chair to sign them.

Members agreed for the Chairman to sign the minutes of the meeting held on 11 December 2025.

Report attached.

The Committee received a presentation on the proposed demolition of the existing building, followed by a residential-led redevelopment of the site, with some ground floor commercial and community spaces, and the creation of a primary school

The application site comprises a large brownfield site located just south of the Romford Ring Road (Oldchurch Road), east of Rom Valley Way, north of the Seedbed Centre site and west of the River Rom. Within the 1.9 hectare site is a large vacant retail store (formerly Homebase) with the remainder of the site laid to hardstanding which used to function as Homebase’s car park and external storage areas.

The proposed redevelopment seeks to provide 584 homes, approximately 200 sqm of commercial floorspace, a new public park and space set aside for a new primary school.

A Member queried flood risk mitigation, noting potential vulnerability at ground-floor level. Officers confirmed most of the site lay outside flood zones and that mitigation measures included minor level increases, bank naturalisation, and increased watercourse capacity, to be secured through conditions and the Flood Risk Assessment.

A Member asked whether the provision of a school formed part of the proposal. Officers confirmed no school was included in the application, but land was safeguarded for future provision through a Section 106 agreement.

Members raised concerns regarding parking provision, particularly disabled parking, and suggested this be increased if possible. Affordable housing was welcomed, though Members queried why only the minimum policy level was proposed and encouraged consideration of additional provision, including for key workers.

The Committee expressed concern about cumulative parking and traffic impacts arising from multiple developments coming forward concurrently. Members urged a coordinated approach with relevant bodies to ensure parking and transport arrangements were workable in practice.

Members welcomed increased public open space but raised concerns about limited connectivity to the town centre, station, and hospital, and the barrier effect of surrounding roads. Officers confirmed pedestrian routes were provided within the site and that contributions would support wider connectivity improvements, including future crossings.

Members raised concerns about graffiti, littering, and long-term management of the river corridor. It was suggested that improvements to areas along the river wall and Old Church Road be considered as part of the development works.

The Committee raised concern about the proposed height of up to 16 storeys which was considered to be at the upper limit of acceptability. Members requested further information on internal layouts and apartment sizes.

The following points were agreed as a summary of the Committee’s views on the development:

1.      The importance of fully addressing and mitigating flood risk was emphasised, with a request that all mitigation measures are clearly explained and fully set out in any future application.

2.      Concerns were raised regarding the division and scale of the school, alongside wider discussion about parking provision, including whether sufficient and safe parking spaces are proposed. Members also highlighted the potential cumulative impacts of surrounding developments.

3.      Consideration was requested as to whether the street design could accommodate  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

Report attached.

Councillor Tim Ryan declared a Non Pecuniary Interest on this item. Councillor Ryan remained in the meeting and took part in the discussion. Councillor Ryan stated that he recently started working with the a Councillor and that he also undertake consultancy work for the Member who was part of the Developer Team presenting this evening.

The Committee received a presentation on the proposed residential-led, mixed-use redevelopment of the former Debenhams site to provide a hotel (Class C1) with commercial space (Class E) at ground and upper floors fronting Market Place, alongside two residential buildings to the rear, connected by a communal amenity podium with commercial uses (Class E) at ground level, and a new public plaza with a freestanding commercial building (Class E), widening and landscaping works to Swan Walk.

The proposal would provide 155 homes within two towers positioned at the southern end of the site, which would be connected by a podium at lower levels, whilst the hotel at the northern end of the site would have 118 rooms.

The Committee was informed that two residential blocks at the southern end of the site are proposed at 12 and 14 storeys, with the taller of these two buildings in the south-east corner. The hotel block facing Market Place would be of a similar height to the existing Debenhams building, at 6 storeys (noting that the existing building has very high floor-to-ceiling heights and the revised scheme incorporates more floors within the same broad envelope through reduced floor-to-ceiling heights).

A Member expressed concern that the proposal did not sufficiently reflect the Masterplan vision for the Market Square. In particular, concern was raised that the frontage appeared overly uniform and modern, lacking reference to the historic medieval market context or a civic presence. It was noted that the hotel entrance represented a missed opportunity for a more distinctive and characterful design. Further concern was raised regarding the scale and bulk of the two rear buildings, which were considered overly dominant. The Member felt that further design work was required to enhance the character of the Market Square.

A Member queried the level of disabled parking provision within the scheme. Officers confirmed that five Blue Badge spaces were proposed, equating to approximately 3 per cent of provision. The Member asked whether this could be increased slightly, noting the high level of activity within the Market Square, particularly on market days.

Members queried the absence of parking provision for hotel guests and sought clarification on policy requirements. Officers advised that there is no minimum parking standard for hotels under the London Plan. Given the highly accessible town centre location and proximity to public transport, parking provision should be limited to disabled, servicing, and operational needs only. Officers explained that additional guest parking would be contrary to sustainable transport objectives and would not be supported by the GLA.

Members noted concerns that hotel guests travelling by car could place additional pressure on existing town centre parking, particularly where public transport services are unreliable.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

Report attached.

Councillor Tim Ryan declared a Non Pecuniary Interest on this item. Councillor Ryan remained in the meeting and took part in the discussion. Councillor Ryan stated that he is a Ward Member and had made comment on the development recently.

The Committee received a presentation on the proposed full planning application for the mixed-use development of the site, including full details for a total of 1,253 affordable homes (100%), a 720 sqm sports hall, a 450 sqm community centre/boat house, 164 sqm of neighbourhood retail floorspace, together with associated landscaping, parking provision and cycle storage, the delivery of over 3.5 hectares of public open space and 1.5 hectares of children’s play space, and the introduction of a new bus route linking Crow Lane and Wood Lane.

The Committee noted that the application site comprises the existing Crowlands Golf Centre, extending to approximately 22.5 hectares of land located to the south of Crow Lane and to the north of Wood Lane and Rush Green Road. The site spans two London boroughs, Barking and Dagenham and Havering, with the majority of the land situated within the London Borough of Havering. It is understood that the entire site is in the ownership of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. The site is designated as Metropolitan Green Belt in both the Havering and Barking and Dagenham Local Plans, and part of the site is also designated as a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC) of Borough Importance.

The report stated that the  land is currently in use as a golf centre, comprising a 9-hole golf course, driving range, lake and clubhouse, and is arranged in an L-shape around the West Ham United training ground, which occupies a substantial area to the south and east. The site is bounded by school playing fields and existing residential development to the west, with a rugby club located to the north-east. In terms of accessibility, the site has a Public Transport Accessibility Level (PTAL) ranging from 1a (very low accessibility) in the north near Crow Lane to 3 (moderate accessibility) in the south near Rush Green Road. No part of the site lies within reasonable walking distance of a rail or Underground station, with Chadwell Heath and Romford stations both located more than 2 kilometres from the nearest point of the site. Public transport provision is limited, with Rush Green Road served by frequent bus routes, while Crow Lane is served only by the westbound 499 bus route, which operates at low frequency and has no bus stops along the site frontage.

With its agreement, a ward Member, Councillor Viddy Persaud addressed the Committee and raised objections to the proposal, stating that there was strong opposition from residents to development on the site which was described as Green Belt land and a valued open space. Councillor Persaud highlighted the importance of the area for community wellbeing, recreation, wildlife, and environmental benefits and warned that development would set a harmful precedent leading to the gradual loss of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 16.