JTP's Eco-neighbourhood at Carr Lodge obtains Outline Planning Approval

Published on 3 March 2011

JTP's masterplan for an exemplar eco-neighbourhood at Carr Lodge in Doncaster obtained Outline Planning Approval last week when Doncaster councillors voted unanimously to approve the 1,600 home scheme.

The site which is a part of the National Coalfields Programme is being delivered by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).

"Proposals to build homes on the site which includes an attractive wetland landscape were controversial" says JTP partner Clare San Martin, "local people initially turned out to protest but once we started talking to them and involving them in the decision-making process it became clear that development could also deliver many benefits; then they became our greatest supporters. We responded to their concerns about preserving landscape features and including a mix of uses to ensure Carr Lodge becomes a community and not just another housing estate."

The collaborative workshop based process facilitated by JTP enabled local people to participate in designing the masterplan. Their ideas influenced the decision to focus movement along a Main Street connecting formerly isolated developments around the site to each other and bringing vitality to a new village square. The square located at the crossing point of routes through the new neighbourhood will provide a focus for new and existing residents with space for a traditional market and community events.

Laura O'Dea, project manager at the HCA said:

"Obtaining planning permission is a major step forward and will allow us to breathe life into this site and provide local people with much needed homes. We can now select a developer to ensure that the vision of JTP becomes a reality. Through the masterplan, these homes will not only address a need but make sure that they will have minimal impact on the environment."

The HCA's requirement to achieve Code for Sustainable Homes, or other successor targets, 3 years in advance of their anticipated mandatory enforcement has also been addressed in the layout. Solar orientation was a key factor in determining the distinctive street grid that optimises opportunities for individual dwellings to use solar technologies.

Related Projects

Carr Lodge,
Doncaster, UK

Settlement Extension
Stage: On-site