Plans to be considered for redevelopment of Post Office Road car park in Harlow town centre
News / Thu 5th Feb 2026 at 07:02am
PLANS by the Harlow Regeneration Partnership to redevelop the Post Office Road Car Park into new high‑quality residential accommodation will be considered by the council’s Development Management Committee next week.
The application seeks full planning permission for two six‑storey buildings providing 169 new homes, along with communal amenity space, landscaping, accessible vehicle and cycle parking, and supporting infrastructure.
A Section 106 agreement attached to the application proposes more than £270,000 in contributions to improve local infrastructure, including early years and childcare services, library provision, health services and local roads. The development would also create job and skills opportunities for residents.
The application will be considered by the committee on Wednesday 11 February 2026. If approved, work would begin once the new bus station in Terminus Street is operational, as the Post Office Raod car park is currently being used as a temporary bus station.
The Harlow Regeneration Partnership is a joint venture between Harlow Council and The Hill Group, combining expertise, investment and delivery capability to support the council’s mission to “rebuild our town” as part of Building Harlow’s Future.
Ends
Saarah
2026-02-05 07:05:24
“High quality, lol”
Jac
2026-02-05 08:17:17
So with all this regeneration of the town centre,.market square becoming an entertainment area and new offices were do you expect all these people to park or are the council planning committee really that delusional and think everyone is just going to go and buy a bike lol
AB
2026-02-05 08:17:26
Will need the 'new' bus station up and running first. So it's going to be some considerable time, unless bus users are shipped off to some god-forsaken corner.
Colin
2026-02-05 08:40:58
With all the new visitors the council is trying to attract with the regeneration of the town, where are they expecting these people to park? Linkway Car Park due to be demolished and now wanting to build on Post Office Road.
Scott H
2026-02-05 09:20:01
The proposal, as last understood, has c. 75 parking spaces for 169 homes….! So overspill goes where? Or is this atrocious council now trying to turn Harlow into a 15-minute city as well as mini-Stratford mark 2.0?
Tim smith
2026-02-05 09:24:41
Bus station area is still not being built, just flat ground and now affinity water has dug up the area in front of terminus house causing complete chaos and now they want to rip up trees in post office car park to put up another tower block eyesore, Harlow certainly living up to the title of dump of Essex,
Jim
2026-02-05 09:57:36
So all the massive trees in the post office car park will be destroyed? I despair
Seamus
2026-02-05 11:24:27
When the council sought planning permission to make this a temporary bus garage whilst works took place on the new bus terminal, the protection of these tree's most planted as Harlow was being built, was deemed absolute. So when yet another council supported developer sought to turn the same car park last May into flats, many wrote in to oppose such a build. The developer claimed he could build without removing or damaging the existing tree's and hedges. Within those plans it makes it very clear that there is absolutely no way you can build the foundations for multiple tower blocks and services to any future build, without killing off multiple tree's. in fact OUTLINE_LANDSCAPE_PROPOSALS_-_REVISED page it shows how many would be retained and how many would be removed it it shows most of them will be chopped down by a developer, that thinks offering to plant half a dozen young tree's to replaced established multiple tree's is ok. The OUTLINE_LANDSCAPE_PROPOSALS_-_REVISED even says in it's report ; No development shall take place on site, including site clearance, tree works, demolition or any other works, until details relevant to the safe retention and protection of trees are submitted within an Arboricultural Method Statement (AMS) in accordance with current BS5837 recommendations. Following written approval of the AMS the development shall be undertaken in accordance with the approved details unless otherwise agreed by the Local Planning Authority. In short, we are being lied too
Nicholas Taylor
2026-02-05 14:27:07
Just to add to the comments already made, there is no proposal to build any social housing, affordable or Intermediate rent homes on this site, they are all "market housing". If the developers which of course includes Harlow Council say they cannot afford to build such homes, there is no hope that any of the hundreds of other homes proposed for the Town Centre will see any built either. Unless the Conservatives and Labout Party suffer defeat the next time elections are held, this development gives an insight as to the future of the Town Centre, that is a high rise housing estate. As for the parking issue, lets not forget that the car park next to Rank House is also set for demolition.
Guy Flegman
2026-02-05 15:42:15
Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah Hahahaha hahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
A resident
2026-02-05 16:21:52
a very bad idea, more housing equals more cars and more traffic around the town centre and no where to park !
Rasp
2026-02-05 17:03:10
Illegal migrants don't have cars....Yet.
Tony
2026-02-05 20:09:56
Why build more homes when we don't have hospital or doctors to cope and the roads around the town centre will be ramed with vehicles that no one will be able to use the town centre. Bad move
TonyB
2026-02-06 00:47:08
“Rebuild our town” is quite a bit of a joke if you were trying to be sarcastic. Just have a look at the thousands of new dwellings the Conservative Council are squeezing into the town centre. In October 2022, the Conservative-run Harlow Council approved planning permission for 741 new flats around Market Square. This town centre scheme is referred to as "Harlow Quarter," This is why Conservative Harlow Council recently bought The Rows to demolish them and the nightclub originally called The Birdcage but has had many names since, Tiffany's, HiWire, Millennium, and Liquid etc. THE SQUARE management asked to use it but was refused by Conservative Harlow Council. Then there is the planning permissions already passed but not built yet: A former Conservative Government levelling-up secretary has permitted the construction of six-story flats above the shops on Broad Walk, "Harlow's High Street," and around parts of Market Square. This might explain why the main pavements in the town centre were excavated for over a year by the Conservative Harlow Council to install additional water drainage and cabling for future housing above the shops. In addition, at least nine new tower blocks, four of which are sixteen stories high, have been given planning permission within the town centre. Conservative Harlow Council does not want the existing Harlow residents and local towns like Roydon, villages and hamlets to use the town centre, they believe they will have enough town centre residents to satisfy any retail within the town centre. Where are they going to park their cars? Is there going to be a Park and Ride? Just a footnote, after great expense and annoyance the new path with pedestrian traffic lights on all the roundabouts will allow pedestrians to access the town centre from the station, but how will they find their way past all the new development?
TIP231
2026-02-06 05:25:25
Why can't the residents of Harlow be asked what they want / how the town should be rather than faceless planners throwing up more and more unaffordable flats / hoyses with no thought for parking, the need for extra access to facilities like Doctors and Dentists - let alone adding to traffic congestion - where they spend thousands of pounds widening roads to put in bus lanes that will be used by infrequent buses so the traffic jams will not be improved?
Kevin
2026-02-06 08:04:36
More houses with no infrastructure. More sewage in our rivers. More traffic with no parking. Trees destroyed - surely these all have preservation orders on them - sorry forgot that doesn't apply to councils or government.
john macer
2026-02-06 10:41:17
Stop and think finish one thing at a time all this rushing headlong knocking down is a recipe for a total balls up. Do the councillors all ride bikes and consider asda car park adequate parking for the whole of the town ???
Darren
2026-02-06 11:34:07
There is an old saying that goes "you cannot put a pint in a half pint pot". Why on earth are developers still trying to do such a thing !! Harlow was never designed to cater for so many people. All developers are achieving here is to turn Harlow into another borough of London, all bricks, concrete and no vegetation. Sir Frederick Gibberd must surely be turning in his grave at what has happened to Harlow :(
Norm
2026-02-06 11:46:01
Stop replacing shops and parking spaces with houses. Then acting surprised when no one uses the shops anymore. It's not rocket science.
TonyB
2026-02-06 12:55:26
Part of The Conservative Government Harlow Gilston Garden Town development plan to the East of Harlow was to build new dwellings, (Harlow council word) approximately 3,350 dwellings, 750 within Epping Forest District and 2,600 within the Harlow district. Hundreds of these new properties would be for Harlow Council tenants. Junction 7a has been built, Gilden Way has been reconfigured, but there is no sign of any building hundreds of new council homes. Conservative run Harlow Council care only for the private sector new private housing developments within the town centre, they do not care about people stuck in temporary accommodation around the town in old office spaces for years and years. The Conservative run Harlow Council has a Council Housing Policy; the destruction of garages to build a few council homes on the former garage sites at the same time removing grassed areas to park the cars, surly they are going against the Master Plan of Sir Frederick Gibberd by doing this. The Conservative Government Harlow Gilston Garden Town development plan seems to have been a major “balls up”, I do not believe anyone thought about buying the land before putting all the plans on paper and announcing it to the world, could this be why Princess Alexandra Hospital has not got a new hospital site and Harlow Council has not got hundreds of new Council homes? This might beg the question should the whole Conservative Government Harlow Gilston Garden Town development plan be scrapped? The cost of the bridges across the rivers and railway to build a new bus lane for Gilston must now be prohibitive and vastly exceed original costings, especially as the time it has taken just to reconfigure three roundabouts that still do not have working traffic lights. Plus, the cost of building even more roads to reach the new “Eastern Crossing” or “Latton Island” across the flood plain for Gilston residents to reach the M11 by driving through Templefields Industrial Estate. Harlow residents have now got to get used to major traffic jams caused by the new Bus lanes (S.T.C.’s) with traffic lights on at least 14 roundabouts for the new private villages around Harlow. In the New- Arts and cultural quarter an Art gallery is being built to house the Gibberd Gallery which is currently located upstairs in the Civic Building. This leaves quite a large space within the Civic building; the council chamber could be moved to Latton Bush in the hall and loads more council dwellings could be built in there.
TonyB
2026-02-06 14:30:22
A bit of a mistake before: An art gallery is planned in the new arts and cultural quarter to accommodate the Gibberd Gallery, which is currently situated on the upper floor of the Civic Building. This relocation will create a significant amount of available space within the Civic Building. The council chamber could be transferred to the hall at the former Latton Bush school, additional council dwellings could be developed in the former Civic Building. I look forward to seeing Harlow Councillors of all parties using the bus to get around Harlow on a regular basis, most of them should have a bus pass by now, so they are intituled to free travel, those that are too young will have to pay and NOT put it on expenses. I’m sorry to say TIP231 we are asked what we want every election but silly people keep voting for the “Demolition Dan” Conservative party or the “lost in Space” Labour Party. As to the new bus lanes that we still haven’t seen NOT working, they are also for Taxis and Minicabs and motor bikes, so I look forward to seeing the whole town centre jam up with the frequencies of lights changing, where Taxis and Minicabs and motor bike delivery drivers trigger the traffic lights as they did before on Second Avenue, roughly once every minute they would change, so you have to be alert, speed up your gear changes or you will be stuck for hours or walk.
Nicholas Taylor
2026-02-06 20:31:22
TonyB, just a correction to your earlier post, none of the homes built to the East of Harlow will be council owned, the consortium of house builders are all in the private sector. As can be evidenced elsewhere, even the number of so called affordable homes may be very limited. It is already clear that the millions of pounds spent on the sustainable transport corridor has/will do nothing to reduce the existing congestion on Harlow's roads around the town centre and we know that the developers of homes at Latton Priory are shying away from paying towards the southern section from the Town Centre to Latton Priory. A look at the flooded fields near the railway station hints at the huge cost involved in creating the link to Gilston, all in the hope that in the future, people will walk, cycle or use a bus instead of their electric and self driven cars.
TonyB
2026-02-07 00:18:51
Nicholas Taylor, I know the new dwellings east of Harlow not council-owned because the Conservative Government and civil servants failed to secure land for both the hospital and council homes before announcing the Harlow Gilston Garden Town plans. This oversight raises concerns about the project's value to Harlow, suggesting it should be reconsidered or abandoned.
Nicholas Taylor
2026-02-07 09:53:52
TonyB, I guess your earlier comment about council homes was tongue in cheek, you are right when you say the council should have invested in land on which publically owned homes could have been built. It was of course the local Labour Party when in control of Harlow Council which helped create the Harlow and Gilston Garden Town, without any consultation with residents and little understanding of the consequences for those of us who already live here. These thousands of new homes in and around the town have nothing to do with local need and what is actually happening in respect of affordable housing flies in the face of what was identified in the Local Plan of December 2020.
TonyB
2026-02-07 15:03:09
Responsibility for the Development Plan Firstly, I would like to thank Nicholas Taylor for providing clarity regarding who holds responsibility for the current situation. It was shared with me by the leader of the Harlow Labour Party at the time that their decision to participate in the Conservative Government’s Harlow Gilston Garden Town development plan was motivated by a desire to have input in its progression. Their stance was not necessarily in full agreement with the plan, but rather an attempt to ensure their voice was heard during its implementation. Upon reviewing the 2020 development plan, I found myself dissatisfied with nearly all its proposals. The entire scheme appeared to have been conceptualised remotely, lacking a sense of practical realism. While the plan may have presented well on paper, it seemed more akin to a fantasy than a feasible solution for the town’s future. One particularly striking example was the inclusion of an image depicting a police officer on a bicycle navigating a future roundabout at the town centre, specifically at the junction of Fourth and First Avenue. This visual element, while perhaps intended to evoke a sense of community and progress, further underscored the disconnect between the plan’s ambitions and the practical realities facing Harlow. I totally agree with the points you made previously about The Playhouse is too small for area population of over 100,000, with just 404 seats and even fewer available during many productions. The £20 million of government funding was a lost chance to create an entertainment hub for the area's future population growth. Market Square and THE SQUARE could have become key parts of a revitalized town centre, possibly with a new council-owned multistorey car park on the old Post Office site. When I suggested this car park to the Labour leader, he spoke about trees and conservation, but it seemed other plans were already in his mind. Now the Conservatives just want to add a café and booking office and a new home for The Rock School. Both Labour and Conservatives councillors have failed in the Harlow Council unanimous vote taken on 4/2/2016 to find a suitable venue for THE SQUARE after the Conservatives sold the site to property developers.
Margaret
2026-02-07 17:48:32
With the rebuilding of market square for shops, restaurants and entertainment area and the old post office car park for housing where are shoppers and visitors to the town expected to park. Asda car park is too far to walk if you have a walking disability
Marie
2026-02-07 22:01:39
Very badly thought out and planned. More pressure on services. Doctors, hospital. More traffic chaos, less parking. More ugly monstrous blocks of flats. Putting even more pressure on an infrastructure that is not fit for purpose of a town already in traffic and parking chaos.
Fiona Allnuu
2026-02-08 09:06:14
Just come across the news that Harlow council are planning to build yet more flats now on post Office Road car park.People are right Harlow will be turned into an extension of London. Green spaces and trees being lost for blocks of concrete. Just like all the London boroughs. Thought Harlow was supposed to be a green space town not a concrete jungle. Our daughter moved to Harlow for the green spaces which seem to be disappearing. Too many cars, no parking not enough infra structure
Keith
2026-02-08 09:58:31
Stop cosying up to developers who are only in it for a fast buck.The provision for parking is absurd.The London plane trees currently on the site probably have TPOs on them.No doubt the powers that be will find a way to get the trees removed so that they can develop.And how exactly does this scheme create housing for local people on the social housing waiting list.It does not.The architects employed by developers to come up with this scheme need to go back to college and find out that the major premise of design and architecture is that "Form should follow function" which it certainly does not in this case.
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