Court puts demolition of estate on hold until hearing of judicial review

Residents fighting the proposed demolition of the Cressingham Gardens estate in Lambeth have won a court order preventing its demolition pending the hearing of a judicial review.

Law firm Leigh Day, which acted for resident Andy Plant, said the order also prohibited the London Borough of Lambeth from beginning possession proceedings and compulsory purchases.

The judicial review is due to be heard in the High Court from 15 to 17 November, when it will be argued that Lambeth failed to follow its own criteria as to the net value of demolition, and breached Mr Plant’s right to property.

Lambeth proposed demolition in 2012 and an earlier judicial review in November 2015 ruled that Lambeth Council acted unlawfully when it removed options for refurbishment from public consultation on the estate’s future.

A second consultation earlier this year led to a further decision to demolish the estate, despite strong opposition from residents, Leigh Day said.

Solicitor Rowan Smith said: “We are extremely pleased that Lambeth Council has backed down and agreed the terms of a court order in our client’s favour. This means that Lambeth Council is strictly limited to what steps it can take on the estate before current legal proceedings have concluded, otherwise it will be in breach of the order and contempt of court.”

A Lambeth spokesman said: “Our published timeline for the proposed redevelopment already makes it clear that no demolition would start on Cressingham Gardens before winter 2018 at the earliest, so this order does not affect that schedule in any way.

“It is therefore incorrect to state that this order means the estate has been ‘saved from demolition’, temporarily or otherwise.”

He said the order had been made by agreement between the parties and so the council had not ‘backed down’.

“We will present our case explaining why we believe we have acted lawfully in respect of this decision, when the issue is heard at judicial review next month,” he added.

Mark Smulian