Plans for a long awaited Overground station next to Millwall Stadium in the pipeline for over a decade have been given a new lease of life after a developer building thousands of homes in the area pledged £17 million towards the scheme.

But Renewal Group, which intends to construct over 3,500 homes in South Bermondsey, has slashed the number of affordable flats in the second stage of the planned development by 100 to fund the new transport commitments. 

The giant five phase scheme proposed for an area around Surrey Canal Road was originally approved in principle by Lewisham Council in 2022.

The developer agreed to build 199 affordable homes in the second stage of the development but provided no cash towards the proposed Overground station.

At the time Transport for London (TfL) had intended to use the government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) to cover the costs of the planned Surrey Canal railway station.

But since then TfL has diverted the money to other projects that have run over budget. 

Renewal Group, which will not begin building later stages of the development until the station is confirmed, has put £17.17 million towards the transport project in an attempt to get the scheme off the ground. 

But the re-jigged plans, which were approved by Lewisham councillors at a meeting on July 31, will see just 99 affordable homes now built in phase two of the development.

A second staircase has also been added to each of the three residential towers in stage one of the development to meet the government’s updated fire safety and building regulations. 

The first part of the scheme would see 600 homes built across three 32-storey skyscrapers connected together by a podium.

Of the new flats, 200 would be affordable, split 60 per cent social housing and 40 per cent intermediate housing, which includes a range of housing types that are cheaper than market prices. 

An auditorium, offices, restaurants and cafés would also be constructed. Later phases of the development, agreed to in principle, would include over 2,900 homes, a new leisure centre, as well as green space, eateries and shops. 

Jordana Malik, from Renewal Group, told a Lewisham strategic planning meeting on July 31 that progress with the development had been slower than expected, but said construction of the first phase should begin in 2026.

She added: “We’ve been swimming against the tide since January 22 to put it colloquially. The proposals you are considering have resolved the station funding framework.

"I think it’s important to reiterate as the applicant in commercial terms we will not start on [later phases] unless the station is coming forward. In terms of commercially how this project works, we need the station to come forward.”

A Lewisham Council planning committee comprised of Cllr Jack Lavery, Cllr Peter Bernards, Cllr John Paschoud, Cllr Kim Powell and Cllr Liam Curran approved the altered plans unanimously.