Residents in Havering gathered in Hornchurch on Saturday to protest plans for a 600MW data centre campus on Green Belt farmland at North Ockendon, in a demonstration that formed part of pan-European days of action on 6 and 7 November. Campaigners said they want Havering Council to reject a live Local Development Order application for the scheme and to open a fresh 12 week public consultation.
The protest, held on 7 November 2026, coincided with coordinated events across Europe organised around demands for a moratorium on new large scale data centres. Organisers said around 101 groups in 15 countries planned demonstrations, local actions and public events on the two days.
The East Havering proposal is for about 200 hectares of Green Belt farmland at North Ockendon and would comprise multiple data centre buildings, an indoor horticultural facility, a district heating network, an ecology park and a visitors centre, the council said. The scheme is described by the council as a campus and it has said the development would be the largest of its kind in Europe and would boost the local economy.
Havering Council, as the local planning authority, consulted on a draft Local Development Order for the campus between 6 March and 12 April 2026. Havering’s Strategic Planning Committee approved the draft LDO consultation on 3 March 2026, and the consultation period is now closed. A Local Development Order is a planning mechanism used for large development projects that sets a framework for specified development, the council said.
Campaigners seek moratorium and further consultation
Campaigners at Saturday’s demonstration warned about the loss of Green Belt farmland and wildlife habitat. They cited an estimated 1.2 million tonnes of CO2 a year from the development, a figure campaigners attributed to their analysis. That number has not been independently verified.
A group spokesperson said: ‘We are calling for a moratorium on new large scale data centres, so we can have a proper democratic debate.’ The spokesperson and other protesters urged councillors to reject the LDO application and to hold a 12 week public consultation to allow fuller scrutiny of the proposals.
Owen Espley, coordinator of StopDirtyDataCentres.eu, said communities across Europe are ‘challenging the imposition of energy, water and land hungry data centres’. Mr Espley described the action as part of a wider movement seeking to place limits on the scale and siting of such developments.
Campaigners have also objected to the use of an LDO as the consenting route for the project, arguing that the mechanism sets a predetermined framework that limits the scope for case by case scrutiny of buildings and infrastructure. The council has said the LDO provides a clear planning framework for large developments and sets out parameters that would guide detailed proposals.
Next steps uncertain
The date on which councillors will formally determine the LDO has not been confirmed. Campaign material circulated by opponents of the project says senior councillors will debate the matter in the week after the protest, but that timing has not been confirmed by the council.
Attendance figures for Saturday’s demonstration have not been published. The council has previously emphasised the potential economic benefits of the campus, while campaigners continue to press for further public consultation and for a moratorium on new large scale facilities until national and local planning policies are reviewed.
Those opposing the development say their concerns include the scale of the land take from the Green Belt, potential impacts on wildlife habitat and questions over the energy, water and other resources such a campus would require. Supporters, according to the council, say the project could bring investment and jobs to the area.
With the draft LDO consultation period closed and the council having already approved the consultation process earlier in the year, the immediate focus for campaigners is on persuading councillors to pause the current proceeding and to allow a fresh period of public engagement before any final determination is made.
