Richard Rogers Partnership is working on a 22-storey residential tower behind the Tate Modern on London’s South Bank.

The tower, to be called Bankside 4, is the fourth building in Land Securities’ Bankside development. On the opposite side of the Tate there is a second proposed tower, to be developed by Chelsfield.

The two towers could become a testing ground for a new approach to the design and planning process championed by Prince Charles.

The Bankside Residents’ Forum, which is concerned over the scale of the towers, wants developers to work with them to create sustainable communities. It met the representatives of the Tate, Chelsfield and Land Securities after attending a conference at the Prince’s Foundation in May.

The forum wants the developers to agree to adopt the foundation’s method of resolving disputes, known as Enquiry by Design. Under this procedure, all those involved in the development process are asked to reach a consensus on the design principles involved.

Anne Radford, chairwoman of the forum, called on Southwark council to convene a meeting over the issue of applying design codes to both towers.

She said: “We are saying that with Enquiry by Design it is possible to take everyone’s preferences and concerns, work on them, and then come back with an image of how a sustainable community could look.”

It is possible to take everyone's concerns, work on them and come back with a sustainable community

Anne Radford, Bankside Residents' Forum

She added that residents were concerned that the scale of development was inappropriate for those who lived there.

The forum hopes to avoid a protracted dispute similar to the one between the Bankside residents and developer London Town on a 20-storey tower at 44 Hopton Street. The Court of Appeal this month rejected a claim by residents that the tower infringed their human rights.

Nick Roberts, development director at Chelsfield, said it was taking all ideas into consideration but noted that on a mixed-ownership site like Bankside it could be difficult to establish design codes.

A Land Securities spokesperson said that early communication with the local community was critical to the successful implementation of any development.