Barking and Dagenham council leader Darren Rodwell blurs the lines between politician and proper bloke quite expertly. The lifelong West Ham fan, who is a personal friend of club captain Mark Noble, is proudly working-class but “that doesn’t mean I can’t be ambitious.” On the day we meet, in Rodwell’s own oval office, he’s just put down the phone to “Nobes” and exudes a salesman-like enthusiasm. “We’ve got lots to talk about,” he assures me.
Indeed we have. Packaged as London’s “growth opportunity”, Barking and Dagenham offers some of the capital’s most affordable brownfield development sites as well as office, retail, industrial and commercial space. Excitedly, Rodwell outlines the vision for the future: “35,000 homes and 10,000 new jobs over the next 20 years. We want to be seen as the most aspirational borough in London. There’s your headline.”
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