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The first phase of East Wick & Sweetwater, comprising two new neighbourhoods within Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park , has been granted planning permission.

East Wick & Sweetwater is located on the western edge of the Park, benefiting from fantastic open spaces, world class sports venues and high speed connections into central London.  It borders the Lee Navigation canal and the cultural and creative quarter of Hackney Wick and Fish Island. The full development is being delivered by a joint venture between Places for People and Balfour Beatty Investments who were appointed following a tender process in March 2015, on the basis of their vision for place making, by London Legacy Development Corporation.

Phase 1 of East Wick will provide over 300 homes (from a total of over 1500 across the two neighbourhoods) of which 37% are affordable and a further 35% are available for private rent.

The two neighbourhoods will provide a high proportion of family accommodation, and the desire to create a great urban environment where families can live and grow is supported by the creation of a new neighbourhood centre in the first phase providing over 3,000m2 of nursery, retail and employment space.  Phase 1 unites these amenities, with a series of interconnected public spaces, which also provide easy access to the green spaces of the Park, the recently opened primary school (Mossbourne Riverside Academy), and the River Lee Navigation canal.

Andrew Atkins, Development Director for East Wick & Sweetwater Projects said: “We are set to deliver two major new neighbourhoods with much needed housing, employment, retail and community spaces some six years ahead of schedule. We are working with the local community, the London Legacy Development Corporation, and the London Boroughs of Hackney and Tower Hamlets to make sure we get the right mix of affordable homes, rented homes and open market sale homes as well as providing space to create jobs, learning and places for the community to enjoy. We will deliver a unique place, inspired by the best of London, where people want to live and that is a key part of building neighbourhoods at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

“We have assembled a brilliant design team who are ensuring that we have the highest standards of design and sustainability. We will continue working with local residents and neighbouring communities to ensure we make a place with the best contribution to an area with such a rich history.”

A team of six architects is being used to ensure richness and diversity in the overall design, with the four buildings within phase one being delivered by Studio Egret West (2 plots) A-Studio, and Piercy and Co. Fabrik are providing landscape design across all the phases to ensure common standards and a harmony of vision. Quod are the retained planning consultants, while communications and engagement is being led by Social Communications.

Work will now start on site this year with completion scheduled for 2019.