Groundbreaking ceremony celebrates the development of a new London South East Colleges’ campus and 300 homes

London South East Colleges (LSEC) and leading housing association L&Q have broken ground on an exciting new project in Greenwich, which will deliver almost 300 new homes and a brand new college campus.

At an event to celebrate the milestone, the College’s Group Principal and CEO, Dr Sam Parrett CBE and Chair, David Eastgate, were joined by the London Deputy Mayor for Housing and Residential Development, Tom Copley, L&Q’s Chief Executive Fiona Fletcher-Smith and its Executive Group Director, Vicky Savage. 

Also attending was Cllr Anthony Okereke, Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, together with officers from the Greater London Authority (GLA) and Greenwich Council. 

With planning having been granted in 2021, the scheme will deliver 294 new homes, over half of which will be affordable, with a mix of Shared Ownership and London Affordable Rent. The development also responds to considerable local need for family housing, providing 63 three-bed homes for families. 

The innovative development includes a cutting edge, sustainable building on the existing London South East Colleges’ site. The college offers high-quality, career-focused education for young people and adults, including apprenticeships, traineeships and vocational qualifications, through to degree-level and professional courses. 

The new building will create a more modern and flexible learning environment, enabling the college to meet employers’ current and future training needs. This will improve and expand opportunities for local people to upskill, reskill and achieve their career ambitions. 

Group Principal and CEO of London South East Colleges, Dr Sam Parrett CBE, said: 

“This is such an exciting development and a fantastic example of community partnership. Together with L&Q, the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the GLA, we are making significant improvements to the local area – ensuring residents have access to quality housing and education. 

“As a college, we are committed to supporting our communities; transforming lives through the power of learning. Our new college campus will enable us to deliver qualifications and courses that meet the rapidly changing skills needs of employers, ensuring current and prospective students can progress into great jobs. 

“We are grateful to all our partners in this project, for both the funding and for sharing our social vision and ambition.” 

Vicky Savage, executive group director of development and sales at L&Q, added:  

“We are excited to soon start work on another plot in Greenwich, working closely with our partners at LSEC, the GLA, and with the support of the Royal Borough of Greenwich. 

“These are unprecedented times for housing supply and affordability but these new homes re-emphasize our commitment to tackling the housing crisis. 

“This particular scheme is all the more important since we are delivering it through our in-house construction team, raising the bar for the sector and continuing to deliver the same high-quality affordable homes, despite economic challenges and downturns.” 

The development will significantly improve the local area, with a new street to enhance connectivity and access. London South East Colleges expects to open the doors of its new campus building in 2025.