Barnfield Estate

Barnfield Estate

Barnfield Gardens - road through the estate
Location Woolwich, Greenwich, London, England
Coordinates 51°28′54.68″N 0°4′16.08″E / 51.4818556°N 0.0711333°E / 51.4818556; 0.0711333
Status Ongoing Regeneration
Governing
Body		 Royal Borough of Greenwich

The Barnfield Estate is a housing estate located in Woolwich, Greenwich, south east London.

Location

The Barnfield Estate is located adjacent to Plumstead Common Road. To the north west is Woolwich Arsenal station, to the west isQueen Elizabeth Hospital, and to the south, Shooter's Hill.

Construction

Building of the estate was approved by the Metropolitan Borough of Woolwich to ease with the growing population and migration in London. The site is densely populated and currently contains 570 homes and 30 tower blocks.

Design

There are both town houses and tower blocks on the estate. There are a number of three storey red brick town houses in and around the area of Barnfield Road and Barnfield Gardens, as well as two storey town houses of varying colours; white, green and pink. There is a number of four and five storey tower blocks on Mayplace Lane in red brick: Acworth House, Alford House, Maxwell House, Squires House and Turton House. An open space is located at either end of Barnfield Road to encourage a community feeling. The coloured buildings are similar to those built on the Thamesmead estate.

Culture

The Barnfield Estate is a densely populated and highly multicultural area. In the census 2011, 42.8% of all residents stated they were black, 4.55% were listed as other (Asian/white/or black) while only 16.3% of the estate was white. There is therefore a large Black African population, alongside a number of Eastern Europeans and a developing Somali community. 30.2% of residents were born outside of the UK, according to the census 2011.[1]

Crime

The Barnfield Estate has a long history of being related to criminal activity, which has led to the recent redevelopment of the estate by the Royal Borough of Greenwich. In 2008, a 20-year-old man was shot on Barnfield Road in a stand-off with two other men, who were Somalian.[2] There are a number of gangs associated with the estate, the Barnfield Boys and the Woolwich Boys.[3] In August 2015, a 24-year-old man was stabbed to death near Turton House, while eight other men were seen running from the scene. An arrest has yet to be made.[4] On 7 October 2015, another stabbing occurred, this time to a 20 year old man who was stabbed in the back. Enquiries are currently ongoing.[5]

Deprivation

In 2010, the area was identified in the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2010 as being in the top 5% of London Local Super Output areas.[6]

Regeneration

The Barnfield Estate is now part of the Greenwich New Homes Standard regeneration scheme, a £10 million pound investment that builds on the previous elements of a similar scheme. The regeneration scheme began in November 2014 and ends in April 2016. The key priorities of this scheme are to improve the quality of the buildings on the estate, making homes warmer, helping prevent damp conditions and to deliver savings for resident's fuel bills. The exterior of the estate will be decorated to improve appearance and further insulate homes.[7][8]

Friends of Barnfield

Along with the regeneration scheme, Friends of Barnfield is a community scheme that has secured £1 million funding to regenerate the estate and focuses on the wellbeing of the residents living there.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "The Barnfield Community (pg1)" (PDF). localtrust.org.uk. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  2. ↑ Mullins, Scott (28 July 2008). "Duo cleared of murder (From This is Local London)". thisislocallondon.co.uk. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  3. ↑ Charlton, Corey (30 July 2014). "Woolwich Boys used drug profits to fund gangsta rap lifestyle". dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  4. ↑ Flood, Rebecca, Griffiths, Josie (11 August 2015). "UPDATE: Murder probe launched after Plumstead man, 24, killed in shocking stabbing". newsshopper.co.uk. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  5. ↑ Collier, Hatty (7 October 2015). "Man stabbed in Plumstead (From News Shopper)". newsshopper.co.uk. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  6. ↑ "The Barnfield Community (pg2)" (PDF). localtrust.org.uk. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  7. ↑ "Barnfield Estate regeneration - Development area: Woolwich". Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  8. ↑ "Barnfield Estate regeneration information for residents". Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  9. ↑ "The Barnfield Community (pg4)" (PDF). localtrust.org.uk. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
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