[1] The proposed demolition led to campaigns by residents, English Heritage and the Twentieth Century Society to save the properties,[2] with an unsuccessful legal challenge to prevent redevelopment, and a return to parkland, if they were demolished.

To quickly alleviate this problem, London, like many other British cities set about building temporary prefabricated houses.

The level of destruction across many British cities brought about the passing of the Housing (Temporary Accommodation) Act 1944, which led to the building of Excalibur and many estates like it.

The estate consisted of single-story prefabricated bungalows designed by the Ministry of Works; each with two bedrooms, a private garden and an indoor lavatory.

This building was originally two huts, it was constructed on site in the conventional manner with a sheet-metal barrelled roof, similar to an Anderson shelter.

They succeeded in seeing Grade II listing applied by English Heritage to six buildings on the estate including St. Mark's Church, exempting them from demolition.

[9] A prominent local resident favouring conservation stated: "The Excalibur Prefab Estate is the largest of its kind now left in Europe.

The design of the buildings, with their subtle modern influences, and the community-focused planning of the estate testifies to the thoughtfulness of post-Blitz reconstruction.

[14] Conservationists have argued this result was inevitable as residents felt there was very little prospect of the council spending any money on their homes, leaving them in outdated accommodation.

[15] Of the estate Lewisham Council stated "We have a responsibility under the national Decent Homes programme to bring all its housing up to a recognised standard.