Densification and planning law in West Ealing (And beyond)

I'm not sure how it is for other cities in the UK (or further afield) but I see an awful lot of building going on around me in London, much of it residential.

When I was a youngster at school in Essex there were area of waste land and open patches around the towns and cities I knew - they weren't the perfect place for health and safety but they did provide space and a chance to run around and make mischief sadly this with the increasing price of land is becoming rare.

Where I live now a little over 100 years ago

There's a policy popular in many of the London boroughs called 'Densification' it sounds like getting more homes into  a given area and that's pretty much what it is - by the nature of economics it favours those without children or small families and helps councils get more income (greater council tax) and less costs - working couples with few children are less of a drain.

Having looked a little at Design and Architecture it is easy to see the mistakes of the past but I fear we are in many respects making very similar errors - although homes are being built for single or couple occupancy this does not mean they will only get used for this and that the new homes will retain their sheen and the thrusting nature of their residents. 

Are these new pristine boxes  'The Trellick Towers' of the future (but without the architectural panache?) - will communities flourish?

Housing policy is not something that should be left only to politicians, builders and town planners the citizen needs to be involved in the decisions that shape the environment they inhabit to make sure they get the best deal they can.

Presumably the Planning authorities have approved the housing and hotel (Holiday Inn, Express- come on)  shown below (do you think they should have? A couple of years ago I thought it was going to be a 'small' hotel.)

West Ealing - Are these the homes we should provide under the banner of  'Densification'?

Approved? Surely this can only be a commercial decision