A £500m housing scheme in south London planned by the Duke of Westminster’s property group has been rejected by the local council, because its cheapest flats will still be too expensive for locals.

On February 6, Southwark Council’s planning committee refused Grosvenor Group’s plans to knock down an old biscuit factory and adjacent college in Bermondsey, and develop about 1,300 homes, a school and retail space on the site.