“We’re all reeling at the moment,” says Alexandra Pringle, a long-term resident at the historic Thames houseboat moorings at Chelsea Reach. “There was this great groundswell of support for us, and the council were maintaining that those boats were quite wrong to be there, and contrary to planning permission. For it to go this way is frankly devastating.”
On 1 November, Alexandra and her neighbours at the moorings received some unexpected news: an enforcement notice made by Kensington and Chelsea council on two controversial “mega-boats” on the moorings had been overturned by the Planning Inspectorate. This meant that the boats, which had been staunchly opposed by residents, local councillors and community groups, would be allowed to remain.
It is the latest development in an ongoing dispute between houseboat owners at Chelsea Reach and Chelsea Yacht and Boat Company (CYBC), which operates the moorings under licence from The Port of London Authority (PLA). In 2016, the company was acquired by husband-and-wife property developers Andrew and Charlotte Moffat. Since then, residents say that the long-standing houseboat community is being forcibly evicted from the moorings through unaffordable increases in their licence, mooring and maintenance fees, and through licence extensions being refused. This is denied by CYBC.
The mega-boats, as residents and local groups describe them, are at the heart of the dispute. Formerly used to transport rubbish down the Thames, the three boats —The Pacifica, The Zephyr and Iris— are owned by the Moffats and have each been converted into two luxury rental apartments. Community groups like The Chelsea Society feel that they are “incompatible with the character of Chelsea Reach”, while local councillors said that the material difference of the boats has “a terrible impact on London’s iconic riverside”, as councillor Gerard Hargreaves put it. Residents, crucially, feel that they are being evicted to make space for the boats. “The atmosphere is being stripped out, and we’re all disappearing,” says Alexandra.
At planning meetings held in December and February, councillors voted unanimously that two of the boats —The Pacifica and The Zephyr; Iris, the third, had been removed from the moorings for dry-dock— were in breach of planning control. They maintained that the houseboats were larger than others moored at the site, and that, through intensification, they constituted a “material change” to the use of the land.
In May, the council issued an enforcement notice for The Pacifica and The Zephyr to be permanently removed from the moorings, effective from 19 June. CYBC appealed the decision with the Planning Inspectorate, and, on 1 November, the enforcement notice was overturned. “On the balance of probabilities,” concluded the Planning Inspectorate, “The use of the land for the mooring of up to 60 houseboats in residential use, including the Pacifica and the Zephyr, was lawful at the date of the application.”
“We welcome the Planning Inspectorate’s decision which has ruled in our favour,” said a spokesperson for CYBC. “At the same time, the process has truly emphasised to us the importance of design and the care for riverside living amongst the community in Chelsea.”
The company also applied to have its costs reimbursed by the council, but this was denied by the Planning Inspectorate.
Reactions to the decision
For residents, the news is a significant setback in an eight-year campaign, and a threat to the community’s existence. Although the appeal concerned two mega-boats, the third, Iris, was returned to the moorings in advance of the decision being made. There are now three mega-boats on the moorings. With The Zephyr and The Pacifica given authorisation, residents are concerned that CYBC has effectively been given a “green card” to bring in further mega-boats.
“We’re very depleted,” says Alexandra. “It will end up with the entire mooring being these large boats, and it’ll look like one of those Cotswold theme park fake country villages. It will be the end of this historic community. This is the beginning of the end.”
“It’s a green card. It sends a signal that [the mega-boats] are not going to be judged as an intensification,” agrees Peter, a resident of more than a decade who wished to remain anonymous. “It begs the question: is this going to happen elsewhere on the Thames and on other inland waterways?”
CYBC declined to answer whether it plans to introduce more larger boats to the moorings, or whether such boats are in development, commenting instead: “We will seek to work with the council, local stakeholders and licensees at Cheyne Pier to draw up a new set of design and safety guidelines that will set the standards for future houseboats in Chelsea and the wider River Thames.”
Councillors who had supported the enforcement notice were also disheartened by the decision. “It is bitterly disappointing that the Planning Inspectorate has quashed the enforcement notice the council issued against the very large houseboats at Cheyne Walk,” said councillor Cem Kemahli. “I believe we put forward a very strong case. Unfortunately, it did not go our way and we must accept the ruling of the Inspectorate.”
Michael Stephen, vice-chairman of the Chelsea Society, commented: “What is extraordinary about this case is that the planning system allows the government to send someone down to Chelsea who may never have lived here, or maybe has never been here before, with power to substitute her opinion for that of the 15 elected councillors, plus the opinion of the Chelsea Society and all the other local organisations…You might say: what is the point in having elected democracy if this sort of thing can happen?”
What now?
Over the past eight years, Alexandra says the atmosphere on the moorings has changed. The community, which has existed on the moorings since the 1930s, has been chipped away and increasing numbers of residents have chosen to rent out their boats to escape the stress and uncertainty of the current situation. 10 boats of an initial 60 have left the moorings since 2018, says Peter. “People have now moved out and are renting out their boats because they are so lowered. It’s depleted us in so many ways, including psychologically,” says Alexandra.
Alexandra and her husband Rick have lived on the moorings for more than 25 years. When their 10-year licence came up for renewal in 2019, the couple say they were quoted £500,000 by CYBC for a new one – despite having paid £30,000 for their previous licence. In 2022, their boat was one of nine assessed through a process called expert determination, and they succeeded in reducing their licence fee to £46,000 for 10 years, backdating the licence to 2019. They are still subject to increased mooring and maintenance fees, which Alexandra says costs “well over £20,000 a year”.
Alexandra and Rick have four-and-a-half years remaining on their licence. After that, the future remains uncertain. “I’m personally feeling really, really low at the moment, and it’s affecting every bit of my life. You wake up feeling sick in the stomach about what on earth is going to happen. It’s really frightening. It’s awful being 71 and being this frightened, after a lifetime of working, looking after other people and trying to be a good person. To wake up now and just be in turmoil and terror – it’s awful.”
Without a licence extension, which residents maintain that they were promised by the previous directors of the company, the boats stand to lose much of their value. If they were to sell their boats, residents say, they face losing their equity. “It’s not just that this piece of beautiful historic Chelsea is being ruined, but our lives are being ruined. Our old ages are in great peril,” says Alexandra.
CYBC contends that its fees have been calculated with professional advice. A spokesperson said: “The mooring licences are for a fixed number of years, which was the agreement when the vessels came to the moorings. There is no automatic right to a renewal. Unfortunately, some boatowners have an unrealistic expectation of what their boats are worth. Boats which are properly priced to reflect the value of the vessel, and the actual length of its licence, do sell on the moorings.”
Peter too is living with uncertainty. In September 2023, he and seven other boats were served with eviction notices. For the last year, they have continued in a kind of stalemate, with the boats remaining on the moorings, paying their fees. “The company takes the money, but doesn’t otherwise communicate with us,” says Peter. “It puts you in a very precarious situation…This is my home. It’s not just about the bricks and mortar —or steel and wood, in this case— it’s about the place where your home is. I want to keep the boat there for as long as I can.”
CYBC commented at the time: “The licences are fixed-term licences and do not include a right to renew as standard. A 10-year licence in Chelsea adds significant value to each boat, but some boatowners do not want to pay for that benefit…CYBC has never refused a licence renewal where the boatowner has a contractual right to renew their licence.”
While proceedings around the enforcement notice on the mega-boats have been underway, residents say that may of the other ongoing issues have also remained in stasis. In February 2023, for example, 33 boatowners requested licence extensions at the expert’s determined rate. This, residents say, continues to be ignored. A new expert determination for the mooring fee is currently ongoing, according to Peter.
“The expert determination, which is now subject to a claim of negligence, undervalued the licences by 90% of their true market value,” said a CYBC spokesperson at the time. “A market transaction [for a 10-year licence] is the best determinant of true open market value.”
Despite increasing tensions, residents maintain that they have not been granted any opportunity to speak to Andrew and Charlotte Moffat directly. “The least he could do is have a town hall with the boatowners and give us the opportunity to ask him questions directly,” says Peter.
A spokesperson for CYBC commented: “Since owning the moorings we have proactively engaged and sought to work with licensees. Following the Planning Inspector’s recent decision, we remain open to engagement and will be contacting boatowners individually to discuss their circumstances in the weeks and months ahead.”
Looking forwards
To Peter, one of the few upsides of the decision to overturn the enforcement notice is that it has “galvanised the local community”. “Rather than just the Chelsea Reach Boatowners’ Association (CRBA) having to carry the fight against development on the river, it’s now the Lots Road Neighbourhood Forum, the Chelsea Society, the Cheyne Walk Trust all taking a very active role in resisting the development.”
Certainly, to Michael Stephen of the Chelsea Society, the matter of the mega-boats —and the potential introduction of further boats— is not yet resolved. “It’s a question of fact and degree. Three, four or five boats is different in fact and degree to the two boats on the basis of which the inspector made her decision,” he says. “I think it opens up a general issue for all local authorities who have river frontage on the Thames. They are going to have to get to together to make representations to the government so that the planning law will enable them to protect these, in many cases, cherished and long-established riparian conservation areas. Planning law is all a bit too vague at the moment.”
For the CRBA’s campaign, this is not the first setback. In 2017, they took CYBC to court and lost, costing the boatowners involved around £1 million in legal fees. “The boatowners have always said that their objective is long-term security of tenure for a fair market rate. We will continue to fight for that with whatever means possible,” says Peter. “We don’t think that the evictions that the company has had to do to get these mega-boats in are fair. We will continue to resist future evictions.”
Residents are also hopeful about the election of new Labour MP Ben Coleman for Chelsea and Fulham earlier this year. In his maiden speech in parliament, Coleman referenced the boatowners at Chelsea Reach: “There is a wonderful houseboat community down by Chelsea, down by the river, that faces an existential threat from a predatory, secretive landlord, and I will be doing more to stick up for that community too.” Coleman has been contacted for comment.
The community intends to push for greater protections for boatowners to be enshrined in law. They believe that boatowners should be entitled to the same protections as renters will have against no-fault evictions, and, like leaseholders will gain under the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act, greater security of tenure. Currently, permanent mobile home residents have greater legal entitlements. Those who pitch on protected (licensed) sites, for example, have protection from eviction under the Caravan Sites Act 1968.
“It’s time that the law caught up with houseboats. Mobile home owners have had protections since the 60s, and we don’t see ourselves as any different. We think that the same protections should apply,” says Peter. “The government’s Renters Rights Bill is looking to provide protection to residential tenants against eviction from landlords, and again we see parallels with the houseboat situation there. In fact, if that bill goes through, it may be that houseboats are the only category of people who do not have long-term security in their homes.”
The appeal decision may have taken the wind out of residents’ sails, but they remain determined. “We’ve got nothing to lose,” says Alexandra. “We’ll fight to our last breath.”
