Welcome to our consultation website for Land East of School Road.
Our consultation is running from Friday 13 March until Friday 17 April.
All of our project information and consultation materials can be found here on our website, where you can learn more about the project team, understand our vision for the site and how you can provide feedback to the project team.
This website will be kept updated, allowing you to review the proposals as they develop.
Our Vision
Why Copford?
Colchester City Council’s Draft Local Plan has identified Copford as a location able to support around 300 new homes, to help meet Colchester's local housing need. The Draft Local Plan allocation for Copford has focussed these new homes across the western part of our site lying to the east of School Road and bordering Pits Wood to the south.
Our proposals have sought to incorporate these new homes on our land, while better aligning the site with the existing boundaries of Copford. To achieve this, our plans now place fewer homes along the boundary of Pits Wood than the Draft Local Plan allocation.
Our plans put placemaking at their heart, by bringing nature and community together, to deliver new homes in a highly sustainable setting.
At a glance
Delivering new homes, to help meet Colchester’s identified housing need, including affordable homes.
Exploring the opportunity to provide facilities that can support veterans, in and after leaving military service.
Unlocking private land, to bring accessible green space to new and existing residents.
Protecting the natural beauty of the site and adding new wildlife habitats.
Aerial view of site
Our Options
We are currently seeking views on two separate options for the development of the site.
Option 1 is a fully residential-led development.
Option 2 is a residential-led development that includes a veterans accommodation scheme.
Once we have received the community’s feedback, we will consider the comments as part of our wider viability considerations, before confirming the development option to pursue for this location. This will then be taken forward as an Outline Planning Application for the site.
As an Outline Planning Application, the initial proposal will confirm the principle, size and overall scope of the proposals. The detailed design, including the style, heights, materials, layout and planting, would be established in a future reserved matters application.
Why veterans’ accommodation?
Colchester has a proud connection to the British military. Stretching back to its foundation by the Romans, it has a historic link to the garrison town as a location for servicemen and veterans over the centuries.
Our servicepeople undertake vital roles in keeping our country safe as well as assisting in international humanitarian efforts. At present, support in transitioning from the military to civilian life is extremely limited leading to a disproportionately high number of ex-servicepeople becoming homeless and sleeping rough.
We are currently in discussions with social developer, Our Enterprise, to explore the possibility of delivering co-located, bespoke veterans’ accommodation and support services alongside our wider residential development.
Our Enterprise’s successful flagship scheme, ‘Entrain Space’, in Wilton, Wiltshire was launched in 2019. To date it has helped hundreds of ex-military personnel and offers a model that we are looking to replicate.
As with most social enterprise endeavours, the Wilton scheme required collaboration between many parties including the landowners, the Local Planning Authority and the end developer to ensure that it was financially viable. Discussions with Colchester City Council on this potential venture are currently at a preliminary stage.
Our Plans
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Proposals in detail:
Up to 340 new homes, including 102 (30%) affordable homes, with a mix of sizes to serve a range of local needs.
Delivering pathways and cycle paths across the site, to encourage sustainable and active travel modes.
Homes built for the future, through the provision of Photovoltaic (PV) solar panels and EV charging points.
Promoting habitat creation, through the planting of new native trees, hedgerows and ponds.
Opening 14 acres of green space to the community including by linking the site to Copford Village Hall and creating a buffer around Pits Wood.
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Proposals in detail:
Circa 300 new homes. The proportion of affordable homes will be determined dependant on the financial viability of the veterans’ accommodation.
Up to 44 apartments, set over two separate blocks, for military service leavers and veterans and their families, with on-site support to help with their transition to a good civilian life.
A café and enterprise space on the ground floor of one of the apartment blocks, which would be operated by veterans and open to the whole community.
Support for veterans will be unlocked through the wider development with both of these blocks being delivered alongside new civilian homes.
Establishing a veterans’ Social Legacy Company (SLC), who could work to maintain community facilities and outdoor space on the site. This would further embed the veterans’ accommodation in the community and reduce maintenance costs for all residents.
Our commitment to Copford
A range of tenures to meet demand
The Draft Local Plan places a strong emphasis on the need for 1-3 bedroom family homes.
We are proposing a mix of sizes to ensure that our plans work in the interest of the community and cater for interests and needs of those at all stages of their lives.
Respecting local character
All homes will be designed using materials that complement the surroundings.
They will be no taller than 2.5 storeys in height, in keeping with the character of neighbouring properties in Copford.
A sustainable development
By providing energy and heat-efficient new homes, we can provide security and stability for future residents. All new homes will include:
• Photovoltaic (PV) solar panels and/or air source air pumps
• Fully-electric space and water heating systems
• Rainwater collection
• Fast electric vehicle charging for each dwelling
• We are also proposing a Community Car Club for flexible transport options
About Us
Welbeck Land is a specialist land promoter. Founded in 1994, our projects are located throughout southern England, ranging from residential schemes of 50 homes to urban extensions and new towns.
Welbeck Land oversee the planning process from start to finish and work closely with local communities, local stakeholders and councils to plan for attractive homes and places.
Whenever there is the opportunity, we look to bring forward wider community enhancements, such as community green spaces, with a focus on enhanced biodiversity and facilities to meet local needs.
Our Enterprise
Our Enterprise is a leading social developer, delivering high-quality communities for veterans to transition back into everyday life. They have developed the Entrain Space model which provides housing and employment support for service leavers. They have previously partnered with housebuilders to deliver veterans’ accommodation as part of wider residential settlements. We are considering the viability of providing a similar facility as part of the proposals for Copford.
What is Entrain Space?
Entrain Space is a social enterprise that provides self-contained, fully furnished flats for veterans and their families.
The Entrain Space model is designed to be delivered as an integral part of wider housing developments, in order create a meaningful community for veterans and civilian residents alike.
Alongside accommodation, Entrain Space includes a professional, on-site support team, providing a personalised programme of support for the veterans. This covers dealing with any wellbeing and welfare issues, integrating into the civilian community, helping to find employment or starting their own businesses, and securing a permanent home.
More details of Entrain Space’s flagship scheme in Wilton, Wiltshire is available at www.entrainspace.co.uk
Planning Timeline
If you have any questions regarding the proposals, then you can get in touch with the project team through the links on the Contact Us section.
Feedback from this consultation, along with our ongoing technical work, will inform the planning application we submit to Colchester City Council later this Spring.
As part of the application, we will submit a Statement of Community Involvement (SCI), which will summarise comments received from the local community and detail the engagement activities undertaken in support of the project. Colchester City Council will conduct its own consultation before making a decision on the application. This presents another opportunity to provide feedback on our application.
Feedback
Thank you for taking the time to learn about our plans.
Welbeck Land is committed to engaging with the local community through this consultation period, as well as successive stages of the planning process.
We welcome your feedback on our outline proposals. To have your say, either fill out the form below or email us: info@landeastofschoolroad.com
This information is compiled by Quatro Public Relations Ltd. on behalf of Welbeck Land. The information you provide will be treated in strict confidence and will not be used to identify you personally. Your personal details will not be passed on to any other third parties, while anonymised versions of your responses will be published as part of the planning application submission. The information you provide will be stored while the project proceeds through the planning system.
Contact Us
If you have any questions regarding the proposals, then you can get in touch with the project team by:
Emailing your answers to the project team at info@landeastofschoolroad.com
Posting your comments (no stamp required) to:
FREEPOST PLUS RUHR-ZXEU-TASK,
7 St Cross Street,
London,
EC1N 8UB
Submitting your comments online.
