Modular Apartments Constructed in Hanwell
Will provide temporary accommodation for homeless people
Picture: Ealing Council
16 new apartments have been created after Ealing Council relocated and refurbished a set of modular units from Southwark to Hanwell.
They will provide temporary accommodation for local homeless households.
The building, which has been purchased from the Hyde Group, is called Chris Payne House, in tribute to the former Ealing councillor who died in 2014. It is sited near existing council properties on Lambourn Close, replacing derelict garages.
The layout has been modified to create two four-bedroom family apartments, with the rest of the site serving as one and two-bed flats. The properties have undergone refurbishment throughout, with new ovens, cookers and white goods.
The new flats will be rented to homeless Ealing residents while they look for a permanent home. The first tenants are expected to move in from 24 June.
The flats – purpose built as housing - were purchased for just £110,000, while a further £2.47 million has been invested in moving, reassembling and renovating them. The council say they will deliver a saving of around £125,000 a year by removing the need for expensive bed and breakfast accommodation for the 16 households that move in. Rental income from the properties will total around £214,000 a year, which means that the scheme could pay for itself in just over eight years.
Councillor Peter Mason, lead member for housing, planning and transformation at Ealing Council said, “The affordable housing crisis in London is getting increasingly worse, so we’re exploring all options to keep on top of growing demand. These new flats will offer 16 households which find themselves in the awful position of being homeless a safe, comfortable roof over their heads.
“Moving modular buildings is not something that happens often; this is one of the first demounting and remountings of such a structure in London. The ability to do this is beyond the capability of many councils, so we’re lucky to have the necessary skills to deal with a complex operation like this.
“Reusing perfectly good buildings that would otherwise have been scrapped means we’re getting excellent value on our investment - we would expect it to cost at least £4 million to build the same number of residences from scratch. Ealing has a particular need for more temporary accommodation with at least four bedrooms, so this innovative re-purposing of existing homes will help us bridge the gap.”
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June 23, 2020