288 people are to be housed in sixty units in South Acton

Interior of shipping container housing unit

288 people registered as homeless with the Council are to be provided with temporary accommodation over Christmas by being housed in shipping containers.

A temporary village made up of refurbished containers is to be sited on land that has been cleared for redevelopment in Hope Gardens, South Acton. There will be 60 self-contained units, communal spaces, laundry facilities and refuse storage areas. The 60 include 32 with two bedrooms, 20 with one bedroom and also eight studio homes. Each has its own kitchenette, shower room, and front door.

It is close to Emmaus House which is the base of Acton Homeless Concern.

The scheme is a partnership between Ealing Council and QED Sustainable Urban Developments (QED). QED have already implemented a smaller project in Ealing at Marston Court earlier this year with 34 units and one in Brighton.

Ross Gilbert, managing director of QED, said, “We are committed to playing our part in addressing the housing crisis. We need short, medium and long term solutions and Meath Court is a short term solution to emergency accommodation.”

The project which is called Meath Court is set to launch on Thursday 7, December with the first residents moving in later in the month.

The Council say that Meath Court was an underused site and had been identified for long-term redevelopment after 2024 but, because of the unprecedented and chronic demand for housing, it was decided to use it for temporary accommodation in the interim.

December 7, 2017