Housing campaigners have launched a petition calling on developers to come up with another plan for the Morning Lane Tesco site with at least 50 per cent council housing.

The site is up for redevelopment after being bought by Hackney Council for £55 million.

Attendees of a public meeting this month unanimously agreed developer Hackney Walk must improve on a proposal put forward at a pre-planning meeting in October, which would include "affordable" workspace underneath 530 homes in tower blocks as high as 19-storeys - of which just 20pc would be "affordable".

Intermediary "affordable" housing is priced at 80pc of full market value and requires a salary of £90,000 to qualify.

The petition has been signed by 340 people.

Adam Foreman who set up the Morning Lane People's Space campaign in response to the Morning Lane development, said: "Any development must be informed by and useful for Hackney residents thus improving their quality of life.

"In terms of housing, the overwhelming need in Hackney is for council housing at social rents. We call on Hackney Walk and Hackney Council to ensure that any development is based on broad and deep consultation with local people so that the development creates the shopping, services, employment opportunities and housing that are useful for them."

The Gazette asked the PR company London Communications, which ran a consultation last year on behalf of its client, the developer Dukeminster, whether it would consider including 50pc social housing on site.

A spokesperson replied: "The original agreement made between the council and Hackney Walk Ltd set the affordable housing at a minimum of 20pc, however, we are working very hard to ensure that this is exceeded and that the proposals deliver as many affordable homes as possible.

"Our proposals will deliver a range of homes for the area, helping to meet the huge need for new housing in Hackney.

The developers are in discussion with the council about their proposals for the site and once they have a more concrete plan, they will hold another consultation.

The Morning Lane People's Space campaign is holding a workshop on planning and development on March 7 from 2pm to 5pm.

The afternoon will see talks from activists and architects followed by discussions and activities to "find ways to campaign for buildings on Morning Lane that work for Hackney residents".

There will then be a campaign planning meeting on March 11 from 7.30pm to 9pm.

View the petition at bit.ly/2SXrHMv.