HEYTHROP COLLEGE DEVELOPMENT
The area within the red line is the Heythrop College site
HEYTHROP COLLEGE DEVELOPMENT
The redevelopment of Heythrop College, which borders the Kensington Court area, is the latest project that will have a major impact on the lives of residents of our neighbourhood. The developers gained approval for their project on 27 November 2018, despite our opposition. However the London Deputy Mayor, Jules Pipe, interjected and refused to allow planning permission. Read an article in the Guardian –
www.theguardian.com/society/2019/apr/23/london-deputy- mayor-rejects-luxury-caviar-care-homes-scheme
www.theguardian.com/society/2019/apr/23/london-deputy- mayor-rejects-luxury-caviar-care-homes-scheme
Heythrop College is a quiet, secluded enclave in this corner of Kensington. Its main college building is on the south side of Kensington Square. Behind it is a large garden and sports area, surrounded by a range of buildings, including a rather ugly block of student accommodation. You reach the garden via a very narrow entrance at the south-east corner of the site. So, it’s off the beaten track which has helped preserve its picturesque, tranquil atmosphere. Heythrop was a theological college and part of London University. But it struggled for a while and in 2015 its owners, the Jesuits, decided to close it and sell the 5½ acre site. Last year it was bought by developers Auriens/Westbourne Capital for £110 million. In September 2018 they put in their revised planning application – and it created a lot of controversy among local residents.
The developer appealed to the Planning Inspectorate and the Inspector concluded that the case should be decided by an Inquiry, as there are now a number of parties involved. This took place at the end of January 2020. We felt very strongly that the RBKC Planning Committee did not properly consider our objections the last time. While we agree that there is not enough affordable housing on offer (the Mayor’s concern), our objections range far wider than that, especially in relation to the development’s size and impact on our community. The Inquiry offered us another chance to raise these issues and try and get this totally unsuitable project stopped.
Alas, the Planning Inspector allowed the appeal against the GLA’s refusal of the project. The Planning Inspector did take careful note of the representations of both KS/KCRA/VRARA and Mrs Lisle-Mainwaring regarding the phenomenal traffic volume in relation to the contstricted access route. The developer has said that any problems will be “mitigated” by traffic marshals and video cameras. The Planning Inspector said “There must be some assurance to all parties that these mitigation measures have to work, both to safeguard local residents and that the development can proceed in accordance with them – if it cannot, the project itself is at risk”
We are keeping an eye on the situation!
Heythrop College Garden today
The KCRA has always accepted that the Heythrop site will be developed but was looking forward to a project that matched the size and nature of this charming site, maintaining the diversity of this community. All has gone eerily quiet on this development.