This is the current main issue for the area. Below is firstly a cut and paste of a report on the WhatsApp group which hopefully contains enough information to give the background. Further back ground information is available on this website eg: The proposed relocation of Regis Road Recycling Centre and the need for more time to respond.
“Members who have been following the saga of the recycling centre and its planned relocation onto Holmes Rd will be aware that there was a meeting yesterday evening between a team from Yoo Capital, the developers of the Regis Road site, and Simon Lear, Managing Director of Camden Film Quarter on the one hand and local residents who had expressed a desire to attend this meeting: D&D, Dee from Willes, Judith, Paul and Chris from Holmes Rd, Kate from Raglan and David, Headteacher of the French school on the other hand.
A lot of the dynamic of this meeting revolved around the question of whether this was any sort of consultation or was it just a presentation by them of what had effectively already been decided?
The answer was fairly clearly the latter, with Simon Lear eventually saying there is no alternative: He asserted that the requirements of Camden mean that the decision arises inevitably for the location and the requirements are integrated into the Local Plan which has already been accepted.
The requirements mentioned are effectively to reduce lorry traffic through the site, to support the green credentials of the site and to improve access from the High Street.
The meeting therefore involved a very strong presentation extolling the virtues of the site generally and of the plans for the recycling centre.
This effectively revolves around the fact that they have already bought the relevant site, the car park to the west of the police station, and will be putting the recycling centre there.
(Side information: This also involves the closure of the existing police station, a listed building, as a functioning front office – news of that decision came out in the last few days anyway. In fact that building will cease to be a police station so far as we could make out (Somewhat vague reference to community use was mentioned) and a new entrance point for contact with police will be established to the east of the current, listed building. The Section House, the large, tall block further to the east of that, which has been empty for decades will now be used as Metropolitan Police offices.)
Turning back to the actual detail of the proposed recycling centre, we were presented with a nice graphic which indicated this by having hashed lines around an empty space on the image.
After some insistence, we were given at least a ground plan of the proposal. They were very cagey about whether we could actually have these to take away although we were told that we would be sent “soft copy” by email. Some of us took photographs of the plans.
Obviously the interest of transparency and their commitment to participation would indicate these should be shared, but we feel we must act scrupulously in order to maintain the respect with them and perhaps more importantly with Camden if we are to have any further influence. We have therefore asked for their agreement to share these diagrams and will post them when available.
However, to describe what they outlined: they were at pains to say that from Holmes Rd it will look like commercial premises on the ground floor with what appears to be a sort of large reception area for people arriving on foot. They hinted that this will include an effort for “up cycling”, the reuse of objects delivered rather than simply them going to scrap.
That area would actually represent some sort of buffer between Holmes Rd and the working recycling centre behind that, which would stretch through to Regis Road where the entry point would be for cars and lorries. There will be 12 skips as there are currently in the existing site.
The most striking thing and the aspect they were very keen to emphasise, was that the recycling centre will be entirely enclosed in what they say would be a soundproof, dust proof building with a concrete slab on top. And this would allow them to put residential flats beside and on top of a functioning recycling centre. This was not to be a part of any net gain in terms of homes, available for them to sell or rent. It will in fact be relocating the existing accommodation now above the works depot. I.e. it would be owned and run by Camden Council or perhaps an agency.
There was some incredulity and protests at the idea that people would be living above what some of us described as “the dump” – to use somewhat different language from that being used by the developers and their architect. As a sweetener and to indicate the green credentials of the whole thing, there will actually be a small park or garden on top of the recycling centre, presumably for the delectation of the council tenants living there.
If this account sounds somewhat sceptical or even cynical, it reflects the strong dissatisfaction that we all had that this was not a consultation with any options available; it was a consultation on micro details and in fact it was a presentation of what is planned and they consider will happen.
Since the logic of the whole proposal derives from what they say are the requirements of Camden Council, any appeal against the fundamental proposition as regards location is going to have to be directed to Camden Council. We have already drafted and sent an email to them, including relevant councillors because they have a meeting today with Yoo capital. We will post that separately.
We will keep everyone posted and updated as soon as possible.
D&D
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Our subsequent email to Camden:
Inkerman Area Residents Association to Adam.harrison@camden.gov.uk; Daniel.pope@camden.gov.uk;david.burns@camden.gov.uk; gavin.sexton@camden.gov.uk; Meric Apak (Cllr); jenny headlam-wells (Cllr); Joseph Ball (Cllr)
Dear Camden Council Team
Following our meeting with Yoo Capital and their partners today, we would like to provide some initial feedback regarding the Camden Film Quarter project, particularly the proposed location of the recycling centre.
We had strong representation from the impacted local community, including IARA, CFBL, 55-57 Holmes Road Recognised Tenants Association, and numerous local residents. This was a welcome opportunity to engage in a constructive discussion with Yoo Capital and express the strong opposition from local residents and groups to the proposed location.
Following the meeting, we would like to raise some specific concerns and questions directly with the council team as we proceed with the process:
- Yoo Capital confirmed that there were no alternative locations available for the site. Is this accurate? We hope that you realise this siting decision appears to have been made without considering the strong objections raised by local residents and stakeholders.
- Yoo Capital confirmed that it was Camden that expressed its desire to relocate the recycling centre closer to Kentish Town High Street. This allegedly was a decisive factor in selecting the specific location. We do not believe there is much support for this view, particularly among local residents. It is disappointing and concerning that no consultation was conducted on this point.
- We understand that Yoo purchased the site from the Met Police with the expectation of it being used as the recycling centre. This is away from the main development site of the Camden Film Quarter. Optically, it appears that Yoo Capital is simply seeking to relocate the recycling centre away from their high-value properties and placing social housing (only) directly on top of it.
- The location of the recycling centre was first mentioned in the final and adopted Supplementary Planning Document from March 2025. Were Camden aware of Yoo’s intention to use this site from the outset of the development process? We do not believe there has been sufficient constructive discussion regarding the detailed impact of relocating the centre to its current proposed location.
We would welcome the opportunity to discuss this matter further with the council team. Following our meeting with Yoo Capital and their partners, it has become evident to us as local residents and their representatives that there are numerous concerns regarding the proposed recycling centre location.
Can we please arrange a meeting to discuss the topic further, prior to the next phase of formal consultations?
Yours sincerely Debby Hyams Chair, IARA (on behalf of the above attendees)