Security guards in Greenwich

Which parts of Greenwich do we cover?

We cover the whole Royal Borough, from the riverside at Greenwich, Charlton and Woolwich to Eltham, Kidbrooke and Avery Hill in the south and Thamesmead in the east.

Most of Greenwich’s change is happening along its stretch of the Thames. The London Plan sets out Opportunity Areas there with this much capacity by 2041:

• Greenwich Peninsula: 17,000 homes and 15,000 jobs
• Charlton Riverside: 8,000 homes and 1,000 jobs
• Woolwich: 5,000 homes and 2,500 jobs
• Thamesmead and Abbey Wood, shared with Bexley: 8,000 homes and 4,000 jobs

On Greenwich Peninsula, served by the Jubilee line and the cable car, the masterplan plans for a community of 35,000 people (GLA). Since April 2025 the Silvertown Tunnel has linked the peninsula to Silvertown under the river.

Charlton Riverside lies between the Thames and Woolwich Road. A delivery framework prepared for the council in 2025 counts 310 businesses and 5,260 jobs there, about 9% of the borough’s jobs (Royal Borough of Greenwich). Its strategic industrial land comes in two parts, west and east, and three protected wharves line the river: Angerstein, Murphy’s and Riverside. The borough’s other strategic industrial land is at Greenwich Peninsula West and in the West Thamesmead and Plumstead industrial area, which includes the White Hart Triangle.

Woolwich is a major town centre that the London Plan sees as a future metropolitan one. Elizabeth line trains have run from Woolwich and Abbey Wood since May 2022 (Royal Borough of Greenwich), and the Royal Arsenal, now home to the Woolwich Works cultural venue, is mostly built. Queen Elizabeth Hospital is on Stadium Road.

Further east, the London Plan backs estate renewal in Thamesmead, a new local centre around Abbey Wood station and work to revive Plumstead High Street.

Inland, Eltham is the borough’s other major town centre, and the University of Greenwich has a campus at Avery Hill in Eltham as well as its riverside campus beside Greenwich Park (University of Greenwich). The old centre of Greenwich, around the Cutty Sark and the Old Royal Naval College, belongs to the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site along with Greenwich Park.

What needs guarding in Greenwich?

Building sites. The GLA’s 2025 review found construction under way on several peninsula plots, next to big empty plots and surface car parks. On the peninsula, a live site needs construction site security: an officer on the gate checking people, vehicles and deliveries by day, and guarding at night. Peninsula land that’s still waiting to be built on can often be covered by mobile patrols instead.

Cleared land in Woolwich. Redevelopment in Woolwich town centre can leave land cleared for a while before building starts (GLA). Until work starts, cleared land still needs its fences and gates checked.

Yards, wharves and units. Charlton Riverside’s businesses work from industrial buildings and yards, with deliveries arriving along Bugsby’s Way from the Blackwall Tunnel. Our warehouse and industrial security covers the gatehouse, vehicle checks and overnight yard patrols, and the same applies to estates in West Thamesmead and Plumstead.

Shops. Woolwich and Eltham are the borough’s two major town centres, with district centres at East Greenwich, Greenwich West, Plumstead and Thamesmead, and Blackheath and Lee Green shared with Lewisham. Uniformed retail officers in Woolwich or Eltham are a visible deterrent on the shop floor and back up your staff.

Front desks. New blocks in the Royal Arsenal and on the peninsula may want a staffed reception for residents, visitors, contractors and parcels, which our concierge officers can run.

Nights out and events. The London Plan rates North Greenwich’s night-time economy as being of international or national significance, and Woolwich and Greenwich West as being of more than local significance. For concerts, functions and public events from the peninsula to Woolwich, our event security officers can manage doors, bags, queues and crowds.

What should Greenwich buyers plan for?

Charged river crossings. Drivers now pay to use both the Silvertown and Blackwall tunnels (Royal Borough of Greenwich). If suppliers reach your site from north of the river, build the charge into delivery plans.

Wharves that work around the clock. The GLA flags the 24-hour operation of safeguarded wharves, including those across the river, as something the peninsula’s new neighbourhoods have to plan around. On a site beside one, tell your officers which night-time vehicle movements are normal, so they report the ones that aren’t.

Long programmes. Only 13 homes were built at Charlton Riverside between 2008 and 2019/20, and the larger schemes planned there will take years to build (GLA). Plan security for every phase of a Charlton Riverside scheme, not just the first.

Heritage controls. In the World Heritage Site, the council treats alterations as it would in a conservation area, and its consent often reaches property boundaries (Royal Borough of Greenwich). Check with the council before adding fencing, gates or barriers in historic Greenwich.