Up to 15,000 new homes could be delivered on a 100-hectare site in South East London after the Thamesmead Waterfront area was shortlisted by the Government as one of twelve possible locations for a new generation of towns.

The project is being led by housing association Peabody and has gained renewed momentum following confirmation of central government backing for a Docklands Light Railway extension serving the area.

The proposed new DLR station is expected to be located close to the development site, significantly improving transport connectivity between Thamesmead and the rest of London for future residents.

Government approval is still required before construction can begin, with a final decision expected in spring following the completion of a Strategic Environmental Assessment process.

The site was recently visited by the London Assembly Planning and Regeneration Committee as part of its investigation into how New Town developments could operate within the capital.

The visit allowed committee members to assess the scale of the opportunity and examine how large-scale housing projects could contribute to addressing London’s severe housing shortage.

Political Support Grows for the Scheme

James Small-Edwards, the Labour Assembly Member who chairs the committee, described the Thamesmead proposal as an obvious choice for development because of its readiness and strong transport backing.

“You’ve got Peabody ready to go, you’ve go the DLR extension now approved by the Government – it’s a really exciting site, I think it’d be great for London,” he told the LDRS.

He said the scheme could make a major contribution to reducing the number of people currently trapped on social housing waiting lists across the capital.

“It’s really important to bring down the number of people on housing waiting lists as well – I hope that we’ll get a stamp of approval in the spring.”

More than 336,000 people are currently registered on London’s social housing waiting lists, highlighting the scale of the crisis facing the city’s housing system.

Political leaders view large-scale developments such as Thamesmead Waterfront as essential if London is to meet its long-term housing targets and population growth demands.

Housing Delivery Pressures in London

London is required to deliver around 88,000 new homes each year for the next decade in order to meet housing demand, according to targets set by central government and City Hall.

However, private sector housing starts have fallen sharply, with an 84 percent drop recorded between 2015 and 2025, reflecting worsening market conditions for developers.

The Mayor of London has blamed a “perfect storm” of rising construction costs, higher interest rates, and planning challenges for slowing housing delivery across the capital.

This slowdown has intensified pressure on public sector and housing association-led developments to step in and fill the growing gap in supply.

Peabody has said it is ready to begin work on the Thamesmead site immediately once final government approval is granted.

The organisation aims to transform currently underused land into a major residential district delivering up to 15,000 homes.

Infrastructure as the Key to Development

James Small-Edwards stressed that the DLR extension demonstrates the importance of transport investment in unlocking large-scale housing projects across London.

He suggested that similar transport improvements, including a potential extension of the Bakerloo Line, could have a comparable effect in other parts of the city.

“That extension has been transformative and allowed them to bring forward a lot of homes, which are going to be really beneficial for Londoners,” he said.

He also emphasised that speed would be critical if the project is to meet government ambitions for housing delivery within the current parliamentary term.

“The main thing [with this project] is speed – this needs to start delivering homes. The ambition for this Government is for it to start doing so by the end of this Parliament.”

“If we can get the approval, get the deliver model in, we can just let them build these houses and Londoners can start living in them.”

Learning from Thamesmead’s Past

Thamesmead has a complicated development history, having been subject to an ambitious but ultimately flawed housing scheme during the 1960s.

That original vision included elevated walkways, extensive green spaces, and innovative urban design but suffered from inadequate transport and infrastructure connections.

Planned extensions of the Jubilee Line to serve the area were abandoned, leaving Thamesmead isolated from central London and limiting its long-term success.

Developers and planners now believe that the situation is fundamentally different due to the confirmed investment in transport connectivity.

John Lewis, Executive Director at Peabody, said the DLR extension changes the entire context of development for the Thamesmead Waterfront site.

Peabody’s Commitment to Infrastructure-Led Growth

“Whilst the land’s always been there and has had the opportunity for development, it’s always had to be at a much lower scale because there wasn’t the the transport infrastructure in place,” he told the LDRS.

He explained that previous development ambitions were constrained because the site lacked the public transport capacity needed to support a large residential population.

“We’re very committed to the fact that you have to have infrastructure before you start development, and of course that’s what that site needs.”

“It hasn’t had the commitment before, so that’s the big difference this time.”

“With the certainty of transport, it means we can start to be very confident in the delivery of the new town itself.”

“We’ve been very clear for some years now that without decent public transport, accessing London and bringing people from London into Thamesmead is absolutely vital to bring a really good quality sustainable development on the waterfront.”

The combination of government backing, transport investment, and housing demand has positioned Thamesmead Waterfront as one of London’s most significant future development opportunities.

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