29-home affordable housing project near Stowmarket to go ahead

Planning permission has been granted by Mid Suffolk District Council’s planning committee for an affordable 29-home development to land north of Station Road in Haughley near Stowmarket.

The development has been proposed by Flagship Homes part of Flagship Group and will be a split of social rent and Shared Ownership with the site comprising of a mixture of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes alongside bungalows. These new homes will feature electric vehicle charging points and air-source heat pumps, with the entire development having a focus on long-term sustainability, biodiversity and energy efficiency. A children’s play park and green space will also be built and pockets of land will provide a diverse environment for animals. Flagship propose that sixteen of the homes will be for social rent, which would see them allocated to families on the local council waiting list. They will be let by Flagship’s housing association, Samphire. The other thirteen homes will be Shared Ownership and will allow people to get onto the housing ladder without a large deposit.

Create have been part of a multidisciplinary team providing technical services and specialist advice, initially supporting the feasibility stage before progressing on to provide assistance throughout planning. This was Flagship Homes’ first development to take into account Biodiversity net gain (BNG) which is a way of creating and improving natural habitats across the UK. BNG makes sure development has a measurably positive impact (‘net gain’) on biodiversity, compared to what was there before development.

We were appointed to the roles of Sustainability, Flood Risk, Transport, Utilities, and Geo-Environmental. In support of the compilation of a robust planning application we have provided a range of services including:

• Energy and Sustainability Assessment
• Utilities Assessment
• Flood Risk Assessment
• Drainage Strategy
• Transport Statement
• Phase 1 Contaminated Land Assessment
• Infiltration Testing and Groundwater Monitoring
• Technical Notes

“We are thrilled to have received approval for this development, which paves the way for much-needed affordable housing for families. Create has played an integral part in the process so far, providing us with invaluable technical services and specialist advice. The environment is at the heart of our plans. These will be low-carbon homes, and we’re taking measures to ensure wildlife can continue to thrive at the site. We’re excited to begin construction and bring this vision to life.”

Mark Williams, Head of Land and Planning Development at Flagship Homes

All of us here at Create are excited to see the building work begin in November. We would like to congratulate our client, Flagship Homes on their success.