Thousands of homes will be built at the council’s flagship regeneration site after plans were given the green light by councillors.

The second phase of the Meridian Water development will see up to 2,300 homes built in blocks of up to 22 storeys at the brownfield site in Upper Edmonton.

A primary school, hotel, commercial and public spaces are also included in the outline plans, which were approved at a meeting of the planning committee on Tuesday (March 24).

Meridian Water is expected to provide 10,000 homes when the scheme is complete. In phase two, 40 per cent will be affordable by unit and 43 per cent by habitable room.

Speaking after the meeting, planning committee member Cllr Mike Rye (Conservative, Town) criticised what he saw as a failure to provide enough affordable housing.

Cllr Rye pointed out that the amount of affordable homes in the phase two plans is below the borough-wide target of 50 per cent set by the council for new developments.

He said: “The issue we have got is they are not meeting their own standards for social housing, which I find utterly incredible.

“This is their answer to the housing problems in Enfield – yet there is not as much social housing as they set themselves.”

The Town ward councillor pointed out that the plans include up to 18,000 sq m of student accommodation.

Cllr Rye said he was not against students, but they would only be there for a short period, whereas the council was hoping to create a “sustainable community”. He claimed more social housing could have been provided instead of the student accommodation.

He also raised concerns over an objection from the Metropolitan Police that the development could contribute to or increase the opportunity for crime, which he called “one of the strongest objections I’ve seen”.

The Met called for a Secured by Design condition – a police initiative to prevent crime through building design – to be attached to the planning permission.

Enfield Council planning chiefs say in the committee report that phase two of the scheme will deliver the maximum amount of affordable housing that is financially viable – and more affordable homes could be provided at a later stage if viability improves.

In response to the Met Police objection, planning chiefs said: “The design code states that the design of buildings and public realm must be in accordance with Secured by Design principles.

“Aspects raised in the formal response from the Met Police such as lighting, boundary treatments and the public realm are covered in the code.

“The need to achieve secure by design also needs to be balanced against other objectives and this assessment would be undertaken at reserved matters stage.”

Chairman of the planning committee Cllr Mahmut Aksanoglu (Labour, Southbury) was approached for comment.