Major achievement at Weyside Urban Village as Phase 1 is granted unanimous planning approval
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Major achievement at Weyside Urban Village as Phase 1 is granted unanimous planning approval

Published on 1 August 2023

For our client Guildford Borough Council, JTP is delighted that the Reserved Matters Application for Phase 1 at Weyside Urban Village has achieved unanimous approval.

This is the latest milestone for Weyside Urban Village which will see the creation of a new sustainable community of 1,500 homes, mixed-uses and green space on the brownfield site of a former sewage treatment works situated along the River Wey. Since 2019, JTP has guided the project to secure Outline Planning approval, produced a Design Code and oversaw its selection as a National Model Design Code Pilot project in 2021 – the feedback of which helped to inform the designs for Phase 1.

Phase 1 will provide 81 homes comprised of one and two bedroom cottage apartments and two to four bedroom houses arranged in a network of streets all focussed around a large community green space. The landscape-led approach has created a framework of green spaces, which are interlinked with attractive pedestrian focussed routes and will eventually connect to the new river walk delivered in future phases.

From an early stage, the design team have sought to align the proposals for Phase 1 with the principles of the Passivhaus standard. The goal was to provide future-proofed homes that incorporate occupant's health and wellbeing, minimise their impact on the environment and set a precedent for future phases of Weyside Urban Village. Passivhaus measures have included high performing external fabric, optimised building form and orientation, window proportions and shading to windows to mitigate overheating and harness solar gain. This approach to design Phase 1 to Passivhaus standards was applauded and commended by the planning committee.

Phase 1 sits within the Garden Mews character area which marks the first entrance to the Weyside Urban Village and serves to connect with the existing community. As such, the materials used reflect this transitional role of Phase 1 with a carefully selected palette of warm tones that seek to complement the broad range of surrounding buildings. To bring interest at ground level, the entrances are celebrated using accent materials including an assortment of richly coloured glazed bricks and brickwork detailing with light and dark buff brick utilised for the main body of dwellings.

“
This is a fantastic accomplishment for our team and another positive step in the journey of Weyside Urban Village. The transformation of this underutilised brownfield site will bring unprecedented benefits to the new and existing community, and we look forward to the delivery of future phases of this special project.
Rebecca Taylor, Partner at JTP

Weyside Urban Village was also recently recognised at the Planning Awards 2023 where the wider design team celebrated the project’s win in the Best Use of Publicly-Owned Land in Placemaking category.