A new development of 46 flats will be built on a car park near Twickenham Station.

Yesterday (August 27) Richmond Council’s planning committee unanimously approved the proposals for the development at Station Yard, which will be between five and six storeys tall.

Some residents raised concerns about over-development in Twickenham town centre, while local ward councillors Roger Crouch and James Chard expressed concern about the lack of affordable housing on offer.

As it stands, 10 of the 46 homes will be classed as affordable.

They will mostly be one and two bedroom homes.

Cllr Crouch said: “It brings a depressing brownfield site back into use, however, I find the lack of affordable housing proposed on this site disappointing.”

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Station Yard Landscape Masterplan. Credit: Solum

He added: “Given its close proximity to the station, bus routes and Twickenham town centre, this is an ideal location for more affordable housing and to remedy the lack of affordable housing provided at Twickenham station and elsewhere in the area.”

However, both Solum and council officers confirmed that the developer was providing the maximum viable amount of affordable homes for the site, which is constrained by its size and a bus-turning point, which is still required by Transport for London.

Solum, a joint venture between Network Rail and Kier Property, is also behind the £100m development of the new Twickenham station, and the 121 new homes above the site.

It seeks to bring private investment into the rail network by generating funds from the development of under-used railway land.

Tim Shaw, Head of Solum, said in a statement: “We are delighted that London Borough of Richmond upon Thames granted permission last night for our scheme of 46 new homes, including 10 affordable, which continues our further investment into and regeneration of the Network Rail land in Twickenham town centre.”

Building work is set to take two years to complete once infrastructure works are undertaken.