Plans to build 100 new homes on the site of a former factory next to the Midland Metropolitan University Hospital in Smethwick are set to be decided by Sandwell Council. The proposal includes 74 flats and 26 houses on the abandoned GKN Factory in Cranford Street, which has been cleared and is now part of a wider multi-million-pound regeneration of the area.
Council's Recommendation
Sandwell Council's planning committee will meet on June 10 to consider the application, with planning officers recommending approval. The site is designated for housing in the development plan, and 25% of the units will be affordable housing, secured by condition.
Design and Layout
The development features five-storey apartment blocks facing the canal and hospital, with two additional blocks and three-storey houses fronting Cranford Street. The council's planners stated: "The application proposes an appropriate reuse of brownfield land which would deliver a much-needed mix of new housing for the borough." A statement from Sandwell Council added: "The proposal, though ambitious, provides a well-designed, simple residential environment."
Funding and Background
The borough received £18m in government levelling up funding in 2024, now extended to March 2028, with Sandwell Council contributing an additional £2m. The £750m Midland Metropolitan University Hospital opened in 2024 after delays. Up to 800 homes are planned around the hospital as part of the council's regeneration strategy.
Sandwell Council used compulsory purchase powers to acquire the GKN factory, which had been empty since the 1980s. Earlier plans for 170 homes were reduced to 100 units. The site was briefly used for a go-kart track in 2005 before a fire, and later served as parking and a site office for the NHS trust.
Other nearby sites include Abberley Street, owned by the West Midlands Combined Authority, earmarked for around 200 homes. A previous plan for 392 flats in London Street was approved in 2023 but construction has not yet begun.
