Rydon is out of the West Ealing estate rebuild. Cabinet agreed on 9 September to bring in Higgins, and work on the last 363 homes should start by early 2027.
The stalled rebuild of the Green Man Lane estate in West Ealing has a new builder. Ealing Council’s cabinet agreed on Wednesday 9 September to let Higgins Construction replace Rydon on the scheme.
The final phases are due to bring 363 new homes. The council’s report says the contractor is programmed to start in late 2026 or early 2027.
The estate sits on Green Man Lane, W13, on the Hanwell side of West Ealing. The council has been planning its redevelopment since 2005.
What cabinet agreed
The report to cabinet asked for one thing: a deed of novation on the scheme’s principal development agreement. That is the legal step that swaps one party to a contract for another.
The scheme is run by Green Man Lane LLP. It is a joint venture between a Rydon company and A2D Developments, part of the housing association A2Dominion. Under the proposal, A2Dominion forms a new company with Higgins, which takes Rydon’s place.
The draft minutes record that cabinet agreed. It delegated the final paperwork to the council’s strategic director of economy and sustainability. Two appendices on the companies’ finances were kept private.
The report says Higgins will not be liable for the homes already built in phases 1, 2, 3 and 6. It is responsible only for what it builds from here.
Why the builder changed
The report is candid about how the scheme stalled.
- After the Grenfell Tower fire, the Rydon group came under scrutiny. Its London and South East division went through a management buyout and was renamed Real Places Limited.
- Its subsidiary, REAL London & South East, carried on building phase 3 and the homes for sale on the old school land.
- In September 2023, while those sale homes were nearly finished, REAL London & South East gave notice that it intended to appoint administrators.
- Rydon stepped back in as guarantor and finished that work. It then said it would not take on any phase that had not yet started.
The report says the scheme had also been hit by Covid and the downturn in the market that followed.
The housing association’s downgrade
The council also checked A2Dominion’s own health before agreeing.
In January 2024 the Regulator of Social Housing downgraded A2Dominion Housing Group’s governance grade from G1 to G3. The regulator said that meant “issues of serious regulatory concern”. Its financial viability grade stayed at V2.
The council’s report says its own due diligence found the group still met the viability standard, although it needed “significant improvements” to its governance. Officers say they are also satisfied that Higgins has the money and the expertise to finish the job. The detail is in the confidential appendices.
Twenty years in the making
The estate’s rebuild began with a cabinet decision on 8 November 2005. The report says residents backed full redevelopment when options came back in January 2008. The development agreement was signed on 8 September 2010.
The original plan was to demolish 472 homes and build 706. It mixed social rent, shared ownership and homes for market sale.
The phases completed so far, according to the report:
| Phase | Completed | New homes |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 2a | July 2012 | 14 social rent homes |
| Phase 1 | April 2014 | 162 |
| Phase 2b | August 2017 | 187 |
| Phase 3 | August 2021 | 143 |
| Final phases | Start due late 2026 or early 2027 | 363 planned |
The scheme also rebuilt St John’s Primary School. A wing of Tintern Court and the community centre were demolished to make room. The new, larger school opened in October 2017. Homes for sale were then built on the old school site to help pay for it.
The report does not give the tenure mix for the final 363 homes. It says only that the deal will “increase the number of genuinely affordable homes in the borough”.
What happens if it had been refused
The report sets out the alternative. The council could have declined, and could have used conditions in the agreement that might end the project altogether.
In that case, it says, the council would be left to develop and fund a replacement scheme itself. It warns that would delay the start “by a number of years”.
The change costs the council nothing beyond its own legal fees, which come from the existing budget for the scheme.
What it means for you
If you live on the estate or next to it, the last phases now have a builder and a target start of late 2026 or early 2027. Expect construction traffic and hoardings from then. The council says it will keep “enhanced oversight” of the programme because of the earlier insolvency.
If you are on the housing register, the report promises more genuinely affordable homes but does not say how many of the 363 they will be. We will report the split when it is published.
If you want to follow it, the next public milestone is the start on site. For planning applications across the borough, see our Ealing planning coverage. For other council housing decisions, see our report on the council buying 95 flats at Bollo Yard in Acton.
Frequently asked questions
Who is building the rest of the Green Man Lane estate?
Higgins Construction. Ealing Council’s cabinet agreed on 9 September 2026 to let a new company formed by A2Dominion and Higgins replace Rydon on the scheme.
How many homes are left to build at Green Man Lane?
The council’s report says the final phases are due to bring forward 363 new homes. Phases 1, 2a, 2b and 3 have delivered 506 homes between them since 2012.
When will work restart at Green Man Lane?
The report says the contractor is programmed to start in late 2026 or early 2027.
Why did the Green Man Lane rebuild stop?
The report blames Covid, the market downturn that followed and contractor insolvency. REAL London & South East, which had taken over Rydon’s London and South East business, gave notice of administration in September 2023. Rydon finished the work then in progress as guarantor but declined to build any further phases.
Sources
- Green Man Lane Development Agreement proposed changes, report to Cabinet, 9 September 2026, for the proposal, the history of the scheme, the phase completions, the school rebuild, the insolvency, the A2Dominion downgrade, the due diligence, the 363 homes, the start date and the alternatives.
- Cabinet, 9 September 2026, agenda and draft minutes, for the decision and the exempt appendices.
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