The houses at Derrick and Atlas Gardens were built in 1908 by William Cory and Son, one of the largest coal and lighterage companies in Victorian and Edwardian London. The company operated coal trans-shipment on the River Thames from the site immediately adjacent to the houses. Floating coal berths called the Atlas and the Derrick unloaded collier ships arriving from the North East coalfields and transferred their cargo into Thames barges for distribution upriver. At its peak, the operation discharged over one million tons of coal per annum. The estate was named after those barges. The houses were built to shelter the men who worked them.

The estate was acquired by the Royal Borough of Greenwich in 1983 and remains under council freehold. In 2018, following a campaign in which DAGRA played an active part, the estate was formally included in the new Charlton Riverside Conservation Area. The Conservation Area Character Appraisal, adopted in March 2021, describes Derrick and Atlas Gardens as a rare surviving example of Edwardian social housing, and lists the properties as Local Heritage Assets.

The company that built these homes, William Cory and Son, eventually became the Cory Group. Its corporate successor is today developing the Riverside Heat Network at Belvedere, a 60MW low-carbon district heating scheme serving up to 21,000 homes in the London Borough of Bexley and the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The company that built the estate is, through its successor, now helping to build the infrastructure that may one day heat it.

We have been here for 117 years. We intend to be here for many more.

A Conservation Area is a place of special architectural or historic interest whose character it is desirable to preserve or enhance. Designation does not freeze a place in time — but it does place legal obligations on anyone proposing to develop within it or on its setting.

The Charlton Riverside Conservation Area encompasses Derrick and Atlas Gardens and the surrounding riverside landscape. The Character Appraisal, adopted in March 2021, identifies the area's distinctive qualities: its Edwardian terraced housing of two to three storeys; a compact, quiet and secluded character; a strong visual connection with the River Thames; and Derrick and Atlas Gardens as a rare surviving example of Edwardian social housing.

The Character Appraisal specifically names the V.I.P. Trading Estate as the eastern boundary of the Conservation Area. It includes two protected Fixed Views, FV1 and FV2, which look directly into the Gardens from Anchor and Hope Lane. These views are legally protected.

The Character Appraisal also notes that development proposals within the setting of the Conservation Area — especially adjacent to Derrick and Atlas Gardens — will need to have regard to the low-rise, intimate character of the area. This is a direct policy obligation on any developer proposing to build on the V.I.P. Industrial Estate.

DAGRA campaigned actively for the Conservation Area designation. It remains one of the most important protections our neighbourhood has.

The Charlton Riverside Masterplan Supplementary Planning Document was adopted by the Royal Borough of Greenwich in 2017, following extensive consultation with residents, community organisations and the borough itself. It cost £854,000 of public money to develop.

The Masterplan allocates the V.I.P. Industrial Estate for housing-led mixed-use development. It sets height limits of three to six storeys across the majority of the allocation. It establishes design principles that explicitly require new development to respect the setting of the Edwardian estate at Derrick and Atlas Gardens.

The weight of the Masterplan was confirmed at the highest level in June 2020, when the Secretary of State dismissed an appeal for a residential development on the V.I.P. Industrial Estate on the grounds that it conflicted with the SPD. The Secretary of State described the document as "well considered and robust, and also a carefully crafted and well-informed document."

Any developer proposing to depart from the Masterplan's housing-led allocation must demonstrate very special circumstances justifying that departure. To date, GLi has not done so.

The London Plan (2021) sets a target of 8,000 new homes and 1,000 new jobs for the Charlton Riverside Opportunity Area by 2041. The V.I.P. Industrial Estate is one of the last significant parcels of allocated housing land that can make a meaningful contribution to delivering it.

In 2016, Rockwell Property submitted plans for a substantial residential development on the V.I.P. Industrial Estate, immediately to the east of Derrick and Atlas Gardens. The proposed heights and massing were significantly greater than those envisaged by the Charlton Riverside Masterplan SPD, which had been adopted the previous year.

DAGRA, working alongside Charlton Together and other community organisations, mounted a sustained four-year campaign opposing the scheme at every stage of the planning process. The campaign argued that the proposed development conflicted with the adopted Masterplan allocation, would cause harm to the character and setting of the Conservation Area, and was contrary to the height and design principles the borough had spent £854,000 to establish.

The scheme was refused by the Royal Borough of Greenwich planning committee. The developer appealed. The Mayor of London considered the scheme and did not support it. The appeal was ultimately dismissed by the Planning Inspectorate on 3 June 2020. The Inspector confirmed that the Charlton Riverside Masterplan SPD is a material consideration of significant weight, and that the proposed development conflicted with it.

The Secretary of State's decision described the SPD as "well considered and robust, and also a carefully crafted and well-informed document." That description — and that precedent — remains in force. It is directly relevant to any proposal that seeks to depart from the Masterplan's housing-led allocation for the V.I.P. Industrial Estate.

The Rockwell campaign demonstrated that organised, evidence-based community action can succeed at every level of the planning system. DAGRA carries that experience into the current campaign against the GLi Charlton Gateway proposal.

The Thames Barrier is the flood defence that stands between London and the tidal surge of the North Sea. Construction began in 1974 and took eight years to complete. The Barrier was opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on 8 May 1982. At the time of its completion it was the world’s largest moveable flood barrier — a distinction it held for more than two decades — and it remains among the largest such structures anywhere on earth. It stretches 520 metres across the river. When its steel gates are raised, each one stands as tall as a five-storey building.

Looking west along Woolwich Reach from Charlton Riverside. Photograph: Selina Johnson.

The Barrier protects approximately 125 square kilometres of central and east London from tidal flooding, covering the homes and workplaces of roughly 1.25 million people, as well as much of the capital’s most significant built heritage: the Palace of Westminster, the City of London, Canary Wharf, the South Bank, and large parts of Southwark and Newham. Since becoming fully operational, it has been raised more than 200 times. Climate change is accelerating the frequency: the Barrier was raised once in its first decade of operation but has been raised more than 180 times since 2000 as storm surges and tidal levels have intensified.

Through the piers at sunset. Canary Wharf is visible in the centre distance. Photograph: Selina Johnson.

From Derrick and Atlas Gardens, the Barrier is your closest significant landmark along the river. Walk west along the Thames Path from Anchor and Hope Lane and you will reach it in around ten minutes. On a clear day, its characteristic silver hoods are visible from the riverbank before you arrive. It is a remarkable sight — especially at high tide or in low autumn light, when the scale of the structure and the breadth of the river come together in a way that is genuinely striking.

South elevation of the Thames Barrier, Woolwich Reach. Architectural illustration drawn for the DAGRA community website.

The Thames Barrier hoods at dusk from Charlton Riverside. Photograph: Selina Johnson.

The Thames Barrier is formally classified as Critical National Infrastructure. This means it is designated as an asset whose continued, uninterrupted operation is considered essential to the safety and functioning of the country. It is one of four such assets within approximately five kilometres of Derrick and Atlas Gardens — a concentration that is relevant to the planning assessment of any major development proposed in this part of Charlton Riverside.