Royal Wharf is a residential and commercial development in

Newham The London Borough of Newham is a London borough created in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. It covers an area previously administered by the Essex county boroughs of West Ham and East Ham, authorities that were both abolished by the ...

, London located on the north bank of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

. It is built on the former site of ''Minoco Wharf'' and is near the

Thames Barrier The Thames Barrier is a retractable barrier system built to protect the floodplain of most of Greater London from exceptionally high tides and storm surges moving up from the North Sea. It has been operational since 1982. When needed, it is c ...

, west of Thames Barrier Park, and close to both West Silvertown and Pontoon Dock DLR stations. The development is a joint venture between

Ballymore Group Ballymore Group is an Ireland-based international property development company. The majority of the company's employees and business activities are located in the UK. History Ballymore Group was founded in 1982 by Sean Mulryan, who is the c ...

and Singapore listed Oxley Holdings. It includes 3,385 residential units and 10,000 square metres of retail and commercial space.

History

The site was originally developed as an industrial works at the end of the nineteenth century and was also used for the manufacture of TNT during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Following this, the site was used by

Shell UK Shell plc is a British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, England. Shell is a public limited company with a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and secondary listings on Euronext Amsterdam and the New Yor ...

for a period as an oil storage and refining site. This came to an end in the 1990s, when the site was left vacant. SilvertownExplosionMemorialInItsNewLocation

Silvertown explosion

Royal Wharf sits on the site of the

Silvertown explosion The Silvertown explosion occurred in Silvertown in West Ham, Essex (now part of the London Borough of Newham, in Greater London) on Friday, 19 January 1917 at 6:52 pm. The blast occurred at a munitions factory that was manufacturing explos ...

, a large explosion at a munitions factory on 19 January 1917 which killed 73 people and injured more than 400, and caused substantial damage to the local area. As part of the development, the Silvertown War Memorial was relocated to Royal Wharf Gardens, in the centre of the development.

Development

In 2012, following a comprehensive consultation process with

Newham Council Newham London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Newham. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. The council is unusual in that its executive function is controlled by a ...

officers, the Thames Gateway Development Corporation and local community stakeholders (including local groups and individual residents), planning permission was granted to redevelop the site with a mixed-use scheme, delivering 3,385 new homes, a new primary school, leisure facilities and retail and commercial office space. , the development is nearly completed, with two blocks remaining. The

Thames Clippers Thames Clippers (since July 2020 branded as Uber Boat by Thames Clippers for sponsorship purposes with Uber) is a river bus service on the Thames in London, England. The company operates both commuter services between eastern and Central Lon ...

riverboat pier and Royal Wharf Primary School opened in 2020. The estimated number of occupants once the development is fully complete is around 10,000. Ballymore is also developing the adjacent riverfront site to the west, Riverscape, to provide 769 homes.

Transport

West Silvertown and Pontoon Dock are the nearest stations on the

Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated light metro system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of London, England and provides a direct connection between London's two major financial districts, Canary Wharf and the City of Lo ...

. London bus route 241 serves the housing development. The site is served by

ferry services from a new pier designed by Nex Architects. The service started on 18 October 2019 and of February 2020 is only served peak times.

References

External links

Royal Wharf Official Site

Lines

{{adjacent stations, system=London River Services, line1=RB1, left1=North Greenwich Pier, right1=Woolwich (Royal Arsenal) Pier Buildings and structures in the London Borough of Newham Redevelopment projects in London Silvertown