South Ribble to weigh up 700+ home plan

Barratt and David Wilson Homes’ reserved matters application for the largest residential phase at the strategic Leyland test track site goes before committee this week.

Of the 743 homes to be considered at Thursday’s meeting, 223 will be classed as affordable – representing 30% of the total. Of these, half will be affordable rent and half intermediate housing. Approval is recommended by officers.

Barratt David Wilson’s professional team includes planner Turley, eScape Urbanists and ERAP Consultant Ecologists

The application relates to phases three to five of the test track area’s residential masterplan, for which outline consent was secured in 2019, two years after its submission. Property Capital completed a land deal shortly thereafter.

Work is under way on the first two residential phases, where 197 homes will be delivered, while CL Projects’ plans for light industrial units at the site have recently been approved.

The volume of housing proposed is broadly in line with the masterplan, which allows up to 753 homes across these plots. There will be apartments as well as two-, three- and four-bedroom houses.

Different housing types will be used, with one example being the “village heart” area in phase three.

In terms of landscaping and green infrastructure, 3.2 acres of woodland is being retained across the site as part of the phase one consent, which also includes a further 23.7 acres of green links and corridors.

BDW has already paid £3m in Community Infrastructure Levy payments, with more to follow.

Overall, the test track site – one of Lancashire’s four strategic development areas, along with Cuerden, the controversial Taylor Wimpey site near Penwortham, and land at Farington Moss – also includes 50,000 sq ft of business park space and 80,000 sq ft of industrial park space as well as district centre retail and a primary school.

Planning officers had delayed recommending approval until confirmation from Lancashire County Council’s highways department that outstanding issues had been resolved, but with that now confirmed, have given the proposals their blessing.