Wandsworth Council has brought more than 100 developers, investors and infrastructure partners together for its first Developer Forum, setting out a new commitment to prepare a borough-wide Growth Plan alongside a more direct approach to working with the development sector.
The forum took place at Battersea Power Station during the week of 16 October. Council cabinet members and senior officers met representatives from across the development and investment sectors to discuss how new homes, jobs and successful places might be delivered across the borough. The discussions focused on earlier engagement, clearer expectations and stronger partnerships.
The meeting is the first forum in a series intended to build relationships with potential development partners. Wandsworth intends to hold conversations about proposals earlier, so that issues and expectations can be understood before plans progress. The council’s leader, Robert Morritt, said the borough was open to working with partners seeking to deliver high-quality homes and places, while making clear that this did not mean approving every proposal.
That distinction is central to the council’s stated approach. Its aim is not simply to attract investment, but to make decisions and expectations clearer for organisations considering projects. The council’s stated aim is for growth to create lasting value for residents through infrastructure, neighbourhoods, jobs and thriving local businesses. The forum was presented as a way to discuss barriers to delivery as well as opportunities.
A borough-wide Growth Plan
Alongside the forum, the council committed to producing a new Growth Plan for Wandsworth. The proposed plan is intended to support a range of housing choices, including homes to rent and buy and affordable housing, together with the infrastructure and investment needed to support growth.
The council has not yet set out the plan’s timetable, funding, housing targets or specific projects. The commitment is therefore a statement of work to come, rather than an adopted programme with confirmed delivery dates. No individual planning application or housing scheme was approved at the forum.
Wandsworth identified opportunities across the borough, from Nine Elms through Clapham Junction to Wandsworth Town, as well as at other sites. The council also pointed to transport links, a skilled population and regeneration work in areas including Battersea and Nine Elms as foundations for future development. These are broad areas of opportunity, not announcements of new permissions.
Dialogue before proposals progress
The event also reflects a wider effort by the council to strengthen links with the development sector. It had previously announced a programme of forums, and the October gathering marks the first session in that series. Future forums are intended to support earlier conversations about viable, high-quality proposals while maintaining scrutiny of each application.
Battersea Power Station Development Company, which hosted the event, described its relationship with the council as important to the regeneration of the site. It said plans for the remaining undeveloped land include up to 3.2 million square feet of residential, commercial and leisure space, with thousands of job opportunities. Those are the company’s future plans for its site, not a new council approval announced at the forum.
