Shapley Heath awarded Garden Village status
Lightwood in conjunction with Hart District Council submitted a bid to join the Government’s Garden Communities programme in November 2018; a programme set up by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to help meet demand for new homes in England.
We are delighted to announce that Shapley Heath Garden Village (at Murrell Green) was one of 19 successful bids to the programme and has been awarded £150,000 in this first year to help develop ‘Shapley Heath Garden Village’ for up to 10,000 homes at Murrell Green and Winchfield.
Lightwood, in collaboration with Gallagher Estates/Barratt Homes:
“This programme is more than about building new homes, it’s about delivering appropriate infrastructure, such as schools, transport, and health and community facilities. The funding and support that we’ll receive as a designated Garden Community will allow a truly locally led approach, developing plans for a new community that is sustainable, beautiful and benefits from the right infrastructure – provided at the right time – together with spaces that promote wellbeing and enhances biodiversity. We still have some way to go with the programme, but this announcement gives us the green light to pursue the creation of a garden community.”
Lightwood sign 163 acres in St Albans
Sandridgebury Farm measures around 66 hectares and lies to the north of St Albans. The core planning strategy is to achieve an allocation in the next review of the Local Plan, beginning in around 5 years’ time. We envisage it being a major part of an urban extension of 2000-2500 homes. The farm is in the Green Belt, but this designation covers all of the local authority area, and it has shown a willingness to alter the Green Belt in the current phase of plan review.
Sale of 60 unit scheme in Stalbridge completed
Lightwood have completed the sale of the 60 unit scheme at Thornhill Road, Stalbridge to Sovereign Housing Association. Sovereign are one of the most active developers of all housing associations in the UK, and have a 30-year track record of delivering homes from new-build, conversion and regeneration schemes.
35 acre site in Shortwood, South Gloucestershire signed
The land is to the east of the A4174 Avon Ring Road and just to the south of Emersons Green and Lyde Green. It is formed of three titles and the three separate landowners are all signatories to a single promotion agreement. A suite of technical studies has been commissioned to prepare a site layout and to establish housing numbers; our estimate is 300+ dwellings.
Lightwood will be making the case for the land to be removed from the Green Belt within the South Gloucestershire Local Plan Review, and will be seeking to influence the examination of the West of England Joint Spatial Plan, which will set the context for South Gloucestershire to 2036. Strategic matters such as the housing requirement, brownfield capacity, and the nature of the planned land supply (e.g. large complex sites versus smaller deliverable locations) will be addressed. Our technical work will promote the sites specific credentials, relative to other locations. Our goal is to have the land released from the Green Belt by 2021.
Lightwood invited to speak at ONWARD ‘Creating Communities’ event
Lightwood were invited to speak at the Creating Communities 2019 conference; a major day-long conference hosted by Onward and Create Streets, with speeches, panel sessions and breakout sessions on specific topics. The event was opened and introduced by the Right Honourable James Brokenshire MP, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, and brought together senior figures from government, local government, industry, community-led housing and resident and community groups, to facilitate expert and informed discussion on material issues and to facilitate conversations beyond the usual.
Strategic Planning Director, Richard Walker, was key speaker in the debate, ‘Using land value uplift to fund infrastructure’, in which he set out Lightwood’s belief that new large-scale developments can and should deliver its infrastructure without the need for government subsidy. The genesis of any planning journey should evolve from land ownership and contractual terms is the driving force which underpins successful, deliverable development.
Lightwood secure Bosch as technology delivery Partner
Lightwood firmly believe that allocating future developments without enshrining the principles of smart technologies from the outset will compound the future sustainability of new settlements. It means smarter transport networks, upgraded water supply and waste disposal facilities, and more efficient ways to light and heat buildings. It also encompasses a more interactive and responsive form of space, governance, safer public spaces and meeting the needs of an ageing population. In smart places, digital technologies translate into better public services for residents, better use of resources and less impact on the environment.
Bosch are industry leaders in smart technology and we are delighted to confirm our partnership with them ensuring that our developments will be SMART, efficient and environmentally friendly by utilising the most advanced technology, infrastructure and utilities system.
Keynote speaker at ‘NPPF and the Environment – The right homes in the right places’
Lightwood Directors, Phil Chichester and James Turner were invited by the National Trust as the key note speakers to present to members of the National Planning Forum and The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) at their event, “NPPF and the Environment – The right homes in the right places?”.
Lightwood have been recognised as a company that is able to deliver strategic new settlements that respond positively to the surrounding landscape and biodiversity, future proofing the new settlements for generations to come.
The starting point with all schemes is the contract and having a good relationship with the landowner. Securing land at the right price enables a pure masterplanning process as schemes are designed around landscape and biodiversity constraints rather than economic drivers, ensuring that the right homes are in the right place. The schemes do not necessarily cost more money to deliver but take more input from the promoters and consultants to design.
Lightwood’s partnership with industry leader, Bosch, ensures the infrastructure is future proofed by embedding the latest innovative ideas of today.
The very valuable consequence of this work is that you deliver a scheme where people want to live. Improving house sales rates and values while providing a net biodiversity gain that would not be afforded without the delivery of new homes.
Consent granted for 45 units in Ovingdean
The Planning Inspectorate has sided with Lightwood and allowed its appeal against the decision of Brighton & Hove City Council (BHCC) to refuse the application for 45 dwellings at land south of Ovingdean Road.
In reaching her decision the Inspector, Lesley Coffey, considered all the evidence submitted and concluded that the site was urban fringe in character and the proposal would not harm the landscape character and appearance of the surrounding area, or the setting of the South Downs National Park (SDNP). Whilst she accepted that there would be limited harm to the ecology and biodiversity of the site, this was not deemed substantial enough to outweigh the considerable benefits the site offered.
Most significantly, Lightwood submitted during the appeal a correction to the supply figures within the Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA). Based on the amended figures, BHCC was only able to demonstrate a very marginal five year housing land supply, with a surplus of just 4 dwellings and a number of other questionable sites included within the figures. This view was supported by the Inspector who concluded that the Council was unable to demonstrate a 5 year supply of housing land and the precise extent of the shortfall would be at least 200 dwellings, but probably greater.
Inspector finds NEA’s Local Plan unsound
Further to the additional hearing session conducted on 9th May in relation to the North Essex Authorities’ (NEA’s) Section 1 Plan, the Inspector has today issued his comments and advice on its soundness and legal compliance.
Whilst the Inspector was satisfied that the NEA’s had met their duty to co-operate and that the steps taken to remediate the “regrettable error” (of their failure to register Lightwood’s duly made representations) had not prejudiced Lightwood, he did concur with Lightwood’s argument that the Sustainability Appraisal was not undertaken objectively or transparently and is therefore unsound. As a result, the Section 1 Plan cannot be adopted.
In order to make it sound and legally compliant the Inspector has suggested that either the Garden Communities proposals are removed from the Plan at this stage, the NEA’s carry out further work on the evidence base and Sustainability Appraisal or withdraw the Plan entirely and resubmit with the necessary revisions.
Read the Inspector’s letter
Lightwood attend additional hearing session
In light of the North Essex Authorities (NEA’s) failure to register Lightwood’s duly made representations, and their subsequent absence from the opening week of the Examination hearings, the Inspector invited Lightwood to submit statements to and attend an additional session, together with all the invitees to the original Matter 1 hearing session.
Lightwood, again represented by Christopher Boyle QC, contested that the Section 1 Plan was unsound and not legally compliant on the basis that the NEA’s had failed to meet the Duty to Cooperate, Lightwood and other parties were prejudiced by the error made by the NEA’s and that the Sustainability Appraisal was deficient and inaccurate.
