What’s happening at Woodberry Down — in plain English - Woodberry Down Community Organisation

The Woodberry Down regeneration covers eight phases in total. We are now well into that journey, and 2026 is a year of significant activity — with demolition underway on Phase 4, consultation advancing on Phase 5, and some important questions about rehousing that every Phase 5 resident needs to understand. Here is where things stand.

Where we are in the programme

Phases 1, 2 and 3 are complete. Residents from phase 4 and later have been moving into the new homes in Phase 3b over recent months, and this process is continuing. Demolition of Phase 4 began in January 2026, and the new build is expected to take approximately four years, with homes available from around spring 2030. Phase 5 is now entering consultation and early planning With a full planning application to be submitted later this year . Phases 6, 7 and 8 will follow in sequence.

Move your mouse over the map below.As it crosses the magenta circles, you will get more information about each of the phases.

Phase 4: what’s happening on site

Demolition is well underway. Hoarding is up around the site, with artwork installed on the hoardings. Piling — the foundation work for the new buildings — is scheduled to begin in summer 2026. Temporary street lighting has been installed between Manor House Underground Station and Sainsbury’s.
Phase 4 will deliver 511 new homes. The great majority are dual-aspect — with windows on more than one side — and all social rented homes are at least dual aspect. Berkeley Homes recently made some design adjustments to comply with updated building regulations on overheating and energy efficiency. These affected some window sizes and positions but do not change the overall character of the development, and Berkeley has confirmed that all rooms retain adequate ventilation.

Phase 5: the decisions that matter most in 2026

Phase 5 is where the most significant decisions for residents are being made this year. Berkeley Homes has been running design consultations since November 2025 and a second round is now underway, with a further design update planned for May and a public exhibition in June. The current proposals include 799 homes, of which 144 will be social rented and 176 shared ownership. The design places a strong emphasis on larger family homes, reflecting the housing needs of residents who will eventually move from Phases 6 and 7.
A further question is the decant strategy — how and when residents currently living in Phase 5 will be rehoused. Phase 5 currently includes 225 council units: 34 secure tenants, 25 leaseholders, and 135 households in temporary accommodation. Hackney has been engaging with these residents over recent weeks through drop-in sessions, door-knocking and surveys. Phase 5 is expected to be formally brought into the decant programme in summer 2026, at which point council tenants will receive decant status and negotiations with leaseholders will begin, with a view to a potential Compulsory Purchase Order process running through 2027 and 2028. The full decant strategy will go to Hackney Cabinet in June 2026.

The question of overlapping phases — what it means for Phase 5 residents

There has been some discussion — including at WDCO Board meetings — about a “double decant.” It is worth explaining what this actually means, because it matters directly to Phase 5 residents.
Programme delays can be reduced if Phase 5 demolition can begin before the Phase 4 build is fully complete — in other words, if the two phases overlap. However, there is currently a potential gap: Phase 4 homes may not be ready until spring 2030, while Phase 5 residents may need to vacate as early as late 2028 — a gap of roughly eighteen months. Hackney is exploring how to bridge this, including the possibility of using existing blocks on the south-western part of the estate as temporary accommodation, and options across Seven Sisters Road. The costs of delay to the programme (approximately £13.5 million) are being weighed against the costs and disruption of a temporary move (approximately £1 million). WDCO has been pressing Hackney to ensure that no resident is moved twice unnecessarily, and we will report further on this when the Cabinet paper is published in June.
Service charges: the main issue is delay
Service charges have been a source of frustration for many residents across the estate, and WDCO takes these concerns seriously. The main problem at the moment is one of delay: NHG has not yet issued the actual accounts for 2023/24 and 2024/25. These are now due to be issued by the end of April 2026, with all accounts fully up to date by September 2026. Estimates for 2026/27 have already been shared. WDCO has asked NHG to clarify the arrangements for adjustments, particularly for leaseholders who may otherwise face lump-sum payments when several years’ accounts are settled at once.
Private leaseholders also face a delay to the issuing of their service charge accounts, as well as questions, of systemic errors going back some years? There is a very general feeling that service charges are too high, and a fear that they may not contain enough provision for reserves should a major component require replacement

The Naturalist

The Naturalist closed down recently. The estate is now without a pub. The property director from Young’s came to meet with some of us recently and has made it clear that Young’s now wishes is to dispose of The Naturalist. Young’s is now considering offers to purchase the lease. We hope to make early contact with the buyers to influence their offer to the public and to complement, rather than compete with, the existing food and beverage outlets.

What comes next

After Phase 4 and Phase 5, the regeneration will continue through Phases 6, 7 and 8. Detailed timelines for these later phases remain to be determined in detail. WDCO will continue to report on all of these issues through this website and at our monthly Board meetings. Everyone who lives or works on the estate is a member of WDCO, and all are welcome to attend our regular board meetings on the third Thursday of every month except August.

Our next Public Forum is on Tuesday 21st April at the Redmond Community Centre — an opportunity to ask questions, meet neighbours, and find out how WDCO works and how you can get involved. We hope to see you there.

Woodberry Down Community Organisation

A community is more than bricks and mortar

What’s happening at Woodberry Down — in plain English