Posted 10 September 2019 by
Keith OsborneThe WhatHouse? team recently headed east to see the first stages of Beam Park, Countryside’s development of the old Ford sight in east London.
We’re welcomed into the marketing suite by Stacey Mitchell, who is associate director of sales for Essex-based developer Countryside. This building itself is an impressive one, two storeys of an innovative modular (off-site) design, which will be here for ten years as this major development takes shape. There’s lift access to the first floor for visitors with limited mobility.
Stacey explains that this is still early days for the scheme: it was opened on May Bank Holiday and has already seen 39 units reserved, an average of four a week up to our visit. These sales have been on a range of one- and two-bedroom apartments and three- and four-bedroom houses. One-bedroom apartments on this phase initially sold out, mainly to purchasers who are single, but there has also been strong interest from young families and those planning to start one, but a new collection is now available.
We take a look at a three-dimensional model of the first phase of homes on a development which will bring some 3,000 new homes (50% of them affordable housing from partners L&Q) to this part of east London, straddling the Boroughs of Barking & Dagenham and Havering. In addition to the wide variety of contemporary-design houses and low- and medium-rise apartments buildings, two schools are proposed, one at each end of the 1.5km site, as is a nursery, medical centre, sports facilities, gym and a brand new station on the C2C railway line, which will be a major pull for commuting homebuyers. There’s a lot of new green space too, both private and communal.
The spacious marketing suite provides plenty of opportunity to see in detail the homes available and also has a fascinating wall display which shows the notable history of the site from when it was established as a Ford plant in 1929, to its use as a practice ground for the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics.
There are currently two show apartments at the site. Decorated and fitted throughout by award-winning Alexander James Interiors, they show the quality of the standard Countryside specification for things like flooring, kitchen finishes and appliances, bathroom units and tiling. There’s plenty of other things about them which buyers will see on every unit, including floor-to-ceiling windows to maximise natural light, a generous private balcony (some apartments have a terrace instead), and fitted wardrobes to the main bedroom.
In the two-bedroom unit, there’s also an en suite for the master bedroom, and the second bedroom is a double. In the one-bedroom apartment, it’s the kitchen is at one end and balcony at the other. There’s also a large cupboard space to one side which houses the washing machine. Stacey explains that the layout for this unit was changed, removing a wall to really open up the kitchen/living room. She also mentions a current special offer – with the whole site installed with ultrafast broadband, buyers can sign up to Hyperoptic and get three months’ service for free – and the service is installed within an hour of agreement.
Next, we go to the fully furnished four-bedroom show house. It’s a ‘Langley’ terraced townhouse that provides 1,422 sq ft of living space over three storeys. Turning right from the hallway we’re in the impressive kitchen/dining/living room. This runs the full length of the home and includes a kitchen with large window at the front and the lounge at the rear with French door access to the garden and additional full-height windows. There’s a cloakroom off the hallway, and the ground floor also has a couple of useful storage cupboards.
Upstairs, there’s the family bathroom with an additional ‘Jack and Jill’ door to the spacious, front-facing bedroom two, which has two floor-to-ceiling windows. Bedrooms three and four face the rear garden. Up to the top floor, which is dedicated to the master bedroom. This is a similar size to bedroom two, with two tilt-and-turn windows, but this comes with the bonus of an en suite shower room and a very large dressing room with two sets of fitted wardrobes, a Velux skylight and an additional large storage cupboard at the rear.
Before we leave, we talk about the local area. Coming in from Dagenham East on the District line, we’d gone through Beam Valley Country Park, a perfect place to escape for peace and quiet, go for a run or walk the dog. There are numerous other green spaces in this part of London including The Chase and Rainham Marshes nature reserves.
The nearest schools include Beam Primary, Newtons Primary and La Sallette Catholic Primary (all rated ‘Good’ by Ofsted) with secondary education at the Harris Academy Rainham, Mayesbrook Park and Hornchurch High School (again, all ‘Good’). Within a few minutes’ drive, there is a Tesco Extra, as well as numerous chains and independent shops and amenities in and around the centres of Dagenham and Rainham. Intu Lakeside is a quarter-of-an-hour away, Bluewater half-an-hour.
For transport, the A13 is literally a minute from home, leading to the M25 in seven minutes. There are two Tube and two National Rail stations within 30 minutes on foot. It’s 20 minutes into London Fenchurch Street from Dagenham Docks by rail, 35 minutes from Dagenham Heathway to Monument on the District line. London City Airport is a 20-minute drive.
At the time of writing, nearly 80% of the first collection of units have been sold but there are one- and two-bedroom apartments available, with prices starting at £273,000, and terraced four-bedroom houses with two parking spaces from £535,000. First completions are expected by Spring 2020. Buyers can take advantage of London Help to Buy on all units up to £600,000. This government-backed scheme has already proven popular with purchasers to date.
The marketing suite and show homes are open seven days a week, from 10.00am to 5.00pm, contactable on [email protected] or 020 3627 8541. Find out more at www.beam-park.com. Please tell the team there you heard about it through Whathouse.com
There’s a video about Beam Park here: