Plans to build a women's-only tower block in West London have been given the green light, despite opposition from some locals. The 102 flats will be rented out to single women but residents have complained the 15-storey tower risks turning the area into a "concrete jungle".

Set to be built by Women's Pioneer Housing (WPH), a housing association set up in 1920 as part of the suffragette movement, the development aims to "challenge gender inequality and provide much-needed homes for women".

Located at Brook House, situated directly opposite Acton Town underground station in Ealing, the five-storey building will triple in height to accommodate the new homes. The apartments will be a mix of one-bed and two-bed flats, 100 per cent of which will be affordable. Men will only be able to live in them if they become a tenant's partner.

Chief Executive at the WPH, Tracey Downie, told The Guardian that the development would be home to women who "have been unable to afford good affordable housing themselves because of their level of income or vulnerability".

This could be due to them having been sexually harassed by a private landlord, are full-time mothers relying on income from a partner from whom they are now separated, or have been the victim of domestic violence.

Ms Downie said: "Providing more good-quality, affordable homes for women is critically important, particularly during this cost-of-living and energy crisis. The gender pay gap becomes a housing affordability gap, which severely restricts the ability of single women to access safe, warm and affordable accommodation."

Some residents had registered their support of the plans. One said: "The proposal seeks to provide 100 light and spacious homes for those who need it. I am aware that life circumstances can change in an instant, so the plan to offer 100 women renewed lives has to be good."

However, not all were in favour. Secretary of the Mill Hill Park Residents' Association, Corinna Stowell, said: "While we support the aims of the WPH association and recognise the need for the redevelopment, as the existing accommodation does not meet today's required standards, we are concerned about the massing and the height of the proposed building, and particularly its 15-storey section."

She added: "Although the proposed development would have little visual impact on the Mill Hill Park Conservation Area itself, we believe it would have a significant adverse visual effect on both Gunnersbury Lane and the area surrounding Acton Town Tube Station."

The original application also received a number of objections from residents. One said: "It seems like the idea of cramming as many people in as possible in the smallest of spaces is becoming the go-to solution to housing in our borough. It is disheartening. I lived in Dubai for a long time and saw it develop into a concrete jungle, devoid of soul and heart. Up and up and up."

Another said: "The area is turning into a horrible high-rise. Around Acton Town still looks pretty good but this will dominate the area and take away from its lovely look of it. You never think of residents when you make these horrible high buildings."

The scheme is being developed in partnership with L&Q, one of London's largest housing associations. WPH is also planning to build another low-rise women's-only complex in Shepherd's Bush, in west London.