The new development will see two new blocks on the east and west side of the square in Peckham High Street

Peckham’s “iconic” arch is to be demolished to make way for new blocks of flats, after a planning committee’s vote on Tuesday.

The new development will see two new blocks on the east and west side of the square in Peckham High Street.

The two blocks will be four and six storeys tall, providing a total of nineteen flats.

One of the new blocks will contain six flats (three two-bed units and three three-bed units) available at social rents.

The other block of will contain thirteen shared-ownership and private rents flats.

The decision came despite opposition from the public and community activists.

Twenty people attended the committee meeting, and over 110 objections were posted on the council’s website.

Benny O’Looney, architect and Peckham Society member, said: “There was agreement among the councillors that the Arch was a powerful symbol for Peckham. But their sense was that a building on public space could be sacrificed as a means of matching Southwark’s housing targets.”