Residents of Hackney’s New Era estate are expected to be moved to new lodgings this summer, as their landlord announced it had found a developer to rebuild the renowned housing complex.
Charitable foundation Dolphin Living last month announced it had appointed developers The Hill Group to replace the private estate’s 1930s architecture with 208 new homes, of which nearly half will be at “intermediate” rent.
This comes more than a decade on from a community campaign first put the estate on the map, when residents launched direct action to overturn rent hikes.
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), a source from the estate, who preferred to remain anonymous, said they had been told by their landlord tenants and residents could expect to be moved to Kingsland Road “hopefully by the end of the summer” for the duration of the works.
Some had already been moved, they added.
The twin announcements mark a turning point in a decade-long saga, which began in 2014 after the 1930s redbrick estate was purchased by US private equity firm, Westbrook Partners.
Having provided affordable rented accommodation since its inception, some families had lived on New Era for over 70 years.
But this band of close-knit residents rallied together in a public campaign when Westbrook imposed a 10 per cent rent hike and threatened hundreds with eviction.
Their furore drew support from hundreds of thousands of people, notably the comedian and actor Russell Brand, local MP Diane Abbott, and the then-mayor of Hackney, Jules Pipe.
The intense public pressure led to Westbrook’s selling the estate to Dolphin, which sought to provide “high-quality rented homes for working Londoners and to guarantee the future of the New Era estate”.
Following “discussion and intensive consultation”, in 2020 Dolphin agreed with the residents it would flatten and rebuild the estate.
At the time, Hoxton councillor Kam Adams said he had raised residents’ concerns about what would happen to them during the demolition and redevelopment.
The landlord promised to rehouse the scores of families living there, who would “pay no more rent than they would have paid had the estate not been rebuilt”.
Dolphin has now confirmed it had purchased the nearby 333 Kingsland Road, where residents will move in as construction is underway. Once complete, they will return to New Era.
Of the new homes, 109 will be for sale and 99 will be available for intermediate rent,”resulting in 50% affordable provision by habitable rooms”, the landlord said.
The LDRS contacted Hoxton East and Shoreditch councillors for comment on the latest announcements, but they declined to add anything further.
Hill Group’s appointment comes after Dolphin secured grant funding from the Mayor of London’s 2016-2023 Affordable Housing Programme for the rebuild.
In May, City Hall’s deputy mayor for housing Tom Copley, said: “I’m pleased to see redevelopment progressing at New Era in Hackney, which the Mayor’s affordable housing programme is supporting to deliver the homes Londoners desperately need.”
“Building high-quality, energy-efficient and affordable homes like this is a vital part of our ongoing work to build a fairer, greener, better London for everyone.”
On-site works are expected to commence in 2026.
Josef Steen is a London-based journalist and Local Democracy Reporter covering Hackney, Camden and Islington.
