Plans for 336 homes and creative industries in Canning Town put forward

An airial view of the Caxton works site in Canning Town (Image: submitted)

Cathedral Group PLC has submitted a planning application for the Goswell Bakeries and Moss Electrical site on Caxton Street North, which has been standing empty for more than five years.

Under the plans the current buildings, which are said to have fallen into disrepair, will be demolished.

Instead architects were commissioned to create a scheme with room for 336 mixed-tenure homes and commercial units.

Hoy Street, which will be at the heart of this new community will be part pedestrianised.

The creative charity House of Fairy Tales has already moved into one of the current warehouse buildings and it is hoped they will become an integral part of the development.

The charity has started outreach work with local schools and other arts-based organisations in the wider community. And the old factories have been hosting art exhibitions and workshops for children.

Cathedral’s Chief Executive, Richard Upton, said: “It has been wonderful to watch the House of Fairy Tales put down roots in the local community in Canning Town and demonstrate the potential of this site to become a catalyst for all sorts of other creative activity.

“It isn’t easy to persuade young, creative enterprises to make their home in areas that have yet to experience significant regeneration, so do not provide many incentives to visit. Yet, as they grow and develop, it is these sorts of enterprises who will act as a magnet for other, similar, organisations and also for the wider community, who naturally want to be part of what’s going on.”

Subject to planning permission, it is anticipated that construction work will start in September 2014 with the first building finished in 2016.