Pickles announces £200million government loan for Wood Wharf Development

The loan will help pay for the infrastructure required to "unlock the site to the east of the existing Canary Wharf estate, including the relocation and upgrading of utilities for the site," according to a government statement.

Wood Wharf development has been in the pipeline for over a decade and received planning permission last year. The development proposals cover a 13.6 hectare site and include 30 new buildings providing a mix of homes, shops, offices and community uses. It consists of up to 3,610 homes, 35,000 square metres of retail space and over 175,000 sq m of office space. The proposed scheme also includes a health facility with nine GPs, a primary school, a leisure centre, two public parks and a learning centre. It is expected that more than 17,000 jobs will be created as a results of the scheme.

The government loan comes from the Homes and Communities Agency's £1billion large sites infrastructure programme. The aim of this programme is to provide funding for developments with at least 1,500 proposed homes that have experienced problems which are hindering the progress of the proposals.

"London Docklands have been completely transformed in the last 20 years into an exciting place to live and work," said Pickles. "The 200million deal will ensure this continues long into the future with the development of Wood Wharf, delivering thousand of homes as well as job opportunities."

"The £200million contribution to this project will accelerate the infrastructure needed to boost this vital centre for business activity by unlocking land to establish Canary Wharf as a residential location, building the homes that London needs to supply viable housing developments," said Andy Rose, chief executive of the Homes and Communities Agency.

Planning expert Jo Miles of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said: "This long awaited redevelopment of Wood Wharf has evolved from the Wood Wharf Masterplan SPG adopted back in 2003 by Tower Hamlets Council. The development has faced a number of challenges along the way but this loan will be the shot in the arm required to kick start work on site."

"Wood Wharf is one of a number of projects to benefit from a loan from HCA's large sites infrastructure programme," she said. "Expressions of interest were sought this time last year for a share of the £1bn fund. The other London site to be shortlisted is the Greenwich Peninsula in South East London where funding would help provide nearly 10,000 new homes."