John Lewis Partnership has abandoned plans to build 428 rental homes above and around its Waitrose store in West Ealing after revealing it is withdrawing from the build to rent (BTR) housing market.
The employee owned retailer had secured planning permission last year for a mixed use redevelopment of the supermarket and its car park, including 428 flats, 83 of them designated for affordable rent. The scheme also proposed a refurbished Waitrose, commercial space and a new public square.
Approval was granted by a government planning inspector after the partnership appealed against Ealing Council on the grounds of non determination. In allowing the appeal, the inspector concluded that the delivery of new homes, including affordable housing, outweighed identified concerns.
The proposals generated significant local opposition. During a public consultation in 2023, 96% of respondents objected. Residents raised concerns about the scale and height of the buildings, pressure on local services and the impact on traffic and the character of the area.
The West Ealing development formed part of a wider strategy announced by the partnership in 2022 to diversify income by building thousands of rental homes on sites it owns across the UK.
That strategy has now been reversed.
A John Lewis spokesperson said: “Our rental property ambition was based on a very different financial environment: one with more stable investment returns, lower borrowing costs and more affordable costs to build homes. Unfortunately, the current climate – higher interest rates, inflationary pressures and a more cautious property market – has meant the model no longer meets the Partnership’s investment criteria.”
The spokesperson added: “We remain committed land owners in our communities and continue to invest significantly in our property assets and retail offer.
“We’re proud of what we’ve achieved in terms of progress with three planning applications and managing third party BTR homes for residents to a high standard. We will fulfil our existing management contracts at four BTR sites as part of a responsible transition out of the business.”
Councillor Jon Ball, Ealing Lib Dems spokesperson on housing and development, said: “I welcome the news that John Lewis Partnership have abandoned their 20-storey tower proposal for West Ealing Waitrose, which was inappropriately high for the area and massively exceeded the local plan maximum. Ealing’s Labour-controlled council failed to determine this application and then failed to oppose it at the planning appeal.
“As the Lib Dem opposition, we demand that Ealing Council deal with any future application for this site properly, and in accordance with the local plan.”
Councillor Julian Gallant, leader of Ealing Conservatives said: “This is the sorry end to a sad tale of Labour incompetence. Nobody in Ealing wanted this huge and unsightly development which offered at best just 19% affordable homes. Yet the council’s own planning department was overridden by the planning inspector on grounds of “non determination”. When later presented with revised plans for the John Lewis development, Conservative councillors expressed doubt that such a project was viable in today’s economic climate. Now we know. In future, Ealing Council must keep control of all planning decisions in the borough.”
No alternative plans or updates for the West Ealing site have been announced.
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