London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Kensington 1960

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington Borough]

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- 49 -
In addition, negotiations have taken place between the
Council and the London County Council in regard to the proposal
to redevelop an area known as the "Blechynden Street area." The
allocation of responsibility between the two authorities has been
agreed as follows:-

To be developed by the London County Council:

To be developed by the London County Council:
Blechynden Street area north west of railway -Gross area in acres8.30

To be developed by the Council:

To be developed by the Council:
Blechynden Street area south east of railway -Gross area xn acres11.40

It will be appreciated that by no means all the properties
in this area are suitable for action under "slum clearance" and the
extent to which action under Part III of the Housing Act, 1957 can
be taken, will depend on the results of a survey of individual
properties.
Kensal New Town Area
This area, which is a large one consisting of over 20
acres, has received special consideration by both the Council and
the London County Council. The problem of overspill of population
necessitates the decanting of persons at present living in the area
while the development on cleared sites proceeds. The original
development plan, as approved by the Council, proposed action in
three phases. The first portion of acres has been tackled by
the Council. Six separate slum clearance areas have been declared,
properties have been demolished and the rebuilding development of
two tower blocks (each comprising 78 dwellings) and forty flats and
maisonettes in four-storey blocks are expected to be ready for
occupation in 1961/1962.
The remainder of the area is complicated by town planning
considerations. Negotiations between the London County Council,
the Council and the Paddington Council have taken place, especially
on the question of the overspill as related to the permitted density
of rebuilding.
The Council's members continued vigorously to press for
an increased density to be allowed for rebuilding in the area to
permit the provision of more housing accommodation and thus to
reduce the overspill problem. They particularly stressed the human
factors involved, namely, that the Kensal New Town area is a closelyknit
one and it is most desirable to avoid destroying the many
personal relationships in the neighbourhood.
The London County Council's view has been that no case
could be made for a density modification at this stage as the
written statement specifically excludes comprehensive development
areas from the special areas where higher densities can be
permitted and the area does not measure up to the other qualifications
for permitting higher densities, such as proximity to
major open space, etc. The London County Council also stated
that a higher density would necessitate a greater open space
provision, so reducing the land available for housing.
In view of the inability of the two authorities to reach
agreement on the question of density, the Council authorised the
lodging with the Minister of Housing and Local Government of a
formal objection to the London County Council's density proposals
for the area.