Crews Hill, a village 12.3 miles north of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Enfield, has been dubbed "Britain's horticultural mile". The area, which lies within the Metropolitan Green Belt and the historic Enfield Chase, is now at the centre of a bitter dispute over government plans to build a new town of up to 21,000 homes.
The Heritage of the Horticultural Mile
Crews Hill takes its name from William Crew, an 18th-century folk hero who allegedly lived to 104 and gave his name to the area. The village's horticultural roots stretch back to the early 20th century, when glasshouses supplied London's markets with cut flowers, pot plants, and vegetables. The area transitioned to garden centres and retail nurseries as cheaper flower imports from the Netherlands became prevalent.
Journalist Ian Jack first described Crews Hill as "Britain's horticultural mile" in a 2008 Guardian article documenting the area's significance in the nation's flower trade. Today, the village is home to numerous independent garden centres, plant nurseries, and horticultural businesses, many of which are family-run and span multiple generations.
The New Town Proposal
In September 2025, the government's New Towns Taskforce proposed a new town at "Crews Hill and Chase Park" as part of a programme to deliver up to 1.5 million homes nationwide. The proposal would see up to 21,000 homes built across approximately 884 hectares of land, with a target of 50 per cent affordable housing.
The taskforce's plans are significantly larger than Enfield Council's existing Local Plan, which had envisaged 5,500 homes at Crews Hill and 3,700 at Chase Park. The government proposal is at least three times the size of the council's original vision for the area.
The taskforce's report described the garden centres as "low value land", a characterisation that caused significant offence among local business owners who employ several hundred people across the area.
Compulsory Purchase and Business Closures
The proposal threatens the closure of numerous family-run businesses that have operated in Crews Hill for decades. Nina Barnes, owner of Culver Garden Centre on a site purchased by her father in 1973, told The Guardian in May 2026 that her business faced the threat of compulsory purchase. Emma Breeze, whose family has run Three Counties Garden and Leisure Buildings since 1988, also faces an uncertain future.
Simon Aylward, whose fencing business has operated in the area for 40 years, and Trevor Wyllie of the Enfield Bird Centre, are among the other established traders facing potential closure. Multiple private landowners would be affected by the proposals; the council owns only 30 per cent of land within the borough.
Council Withdrawal and Government Response
Following the May 2026 local elections, Enfield Council came under Conservative leadership after Labour lost control. The new administration, led by Councillor Alessandro Georgiou, withdrew the council from the new towns programme on 28 May 2026. The move followed an election in which 77 per cent of voters backed parties pledging to protect the Green Belt.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer responded by attacking Enfield Council as "naysayers and blockers" during a statement on 3 June 2026. The Prime Minister's intervention has raised the prospect of a mayoral development corporation being imposed on the area, which could strip the council of its planning powers.
The government has also discussed plans for Transport for London to take control of the Hertford Loop railway line, which runs from Moorgate to Welwyn Garden City and Stevenage via Crews Hill station.
Multiple Threats Converging
The new town proposal is not the only challenge facing the area. In July 2025, Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan's office approved plans for Tottenham Hotspur Football Club to fence off 16 hectares of Whitewebbs Park for a women's football academy, despite the park's Green Belt designation.
The approval followed a campaign by local groups including Guardians of Whitewebbs, Friends of Whitewebbs Park, and the Save Whitewebbs campaign. Crews Hill Golf Course, which dates from 1916, has also been identified for potential housing development.
Alternative Approaches
Campaign group Better Homes Enfield has called for a brownfield-first approach to housing in the borough. Matt Burn of the group has argued that existing brownfield sites could be developed before encroaching on the Green Belt.
The Campaign to Protect Rural England has also opposed the new town proposals, highlighting the environmental and heritage value of the Enfield Chase area.
