After months of tension, Redbridge Council’s leader has promised to meet residents to discuss fears the Local Plan could “destroy” South Woodford.

Ever since the Redbridge Local Plan 2015-2030 was released for public consultation in May, people in South Woodford have branded plans for 650 homes in the area “reckless” and a “threat to our way of life.”

The South Woodford Society (SWS) claim the proposals do not respect the suburban character of the area or provide enough infrastructure.

Fears over lack of school places and doctors surgeries, as well as pressure on the Central Line and roads are also shared by opposition councillors in Roding and Church End.

But after a recent Local Plan consultation evening at South Woodford Library left people “worried and confused”, Redbridge Council leader Jas Athwal has promised to meet those concerned face to face.

He said: “I will meet with anyone who wants to sit down and discuss the Local Plan.

“I will set something up with concerned residents, myself and officers in the next two or three weeks.”

SWS welcomed Cllr Athwal’s offer, but maintained the decision to make South Woodford one of the borough’s five investment and growth areas is “fundamentally flawed”.

Member Rena Pathak said: “Although this offer is appreciated, we can't but help feel it has come very late in the timeline of the plan.

“Businesses and residents should have been consulted at the earliest stages of the plan, so our innate understanding of the area and knowledge of what South Woodford can or cannot offer, could have been incorporated.”

Conservative Cllr Tom McLaren of Church End echoed Mrs Pathak’s concerns.

He said: “I am obviously pleased the leader is making time to meet with residents, but so late in the game we are far beyond the point of any material changes being made.

“We have seen little engagement when it comes to areas like South Woodford that are mainly represented by opposition councillors.”

But Cllr Athwal claims the best way forward is for the council and community to work together.

He said: “There comes a point when community protests are better served by helping us to deliver the best plan we can.

“This is and will continue to be a proper consultation process – nothing is going through by stealth.

“The residents are in the driving seat here, but they do have to accept we have housing targets to meet and doing nothing is not an option.”

In an attempt to address fears there will not be enough infrastructure to support new homes, the leader said there will be sufficient schools, doctors and transport links to accommodate them.

He said: “The Local Plan shows how we are going to meet housing targets until 2030.

“It is a high-level strategic document, but at this  stage it will not say ‘we’re going to build this school in this place.’

“If the plan doesn’t list a particular site for a new school in South Woodford, it doesn’t mean there won’t be any.

“We know school places, doctors waiting lists and transport links are an issue, but they will be addressed as times goes on.

“You cannot expect that level of detail at this stage.

"It would be easy for me to say we're not going to build any homes in South Woodford, but if I did that the Secretary of State would take the Local Plan and build them anyway without any local input at all."

Liberal Democrat Cllr for Roding Gwyneth Deakins, who wrote to Cllr Athwal asking for a resident meeting said she was pleased, but asked “why it took this long and this amount of fuss?”

She added: “He claims opposition councillors are playing politics but the fact my views are similar to those of SWS show that I am doing what politicians do – representing the views of local people.”