Oct 10 2005
English Partnerships the national regeneration agency, has named the developers who will deliver one of England’s largest new communities at Lawley, in Telford, in a £500m project.
Speaking at the agency’s annual Open Meeting, Chairman Margaret Ford announced that George Wimpey UK, Persimmon Homes and Barratt Homes have been appointed after making a joint bid to develop the 70ha site. The Lawley scheme will see some 3,300 homes being built, along with offices, restaurants, bars, a primary school, parkland and shops.
Mrs Ford said, “The winning developers are some of the country’s most successful house builders. They have shown that they have the vision and ambition to make sure this project reaches its full potential.
“Lawley will be one of Britain’s most significant and exciting urban developments. It will set national standards on how a large sustainable community can be designed, created and integrated with an existing town.
“Just as important is the thinking behind the project. The development will attract people from a wide range of incomes, ages and households. Local people have played a major part in shaping Lawley’s foundations, and they will continue to have a big say in how it develops. We want them to have a genuine sense of pride and ownership in the community they’ve helped to create.” The new community will account for about a fifth of the new homes that Telford needs over the next decade, with a quarter of the planned homes being affordable, split between shared-ownership and social rented. Work on the development – all on brownfield or previously developed land – is due to start by mid-2006.
Also speaking at the Open Meeting, English Partnerships Chief Executive, David Higgins, highlighted some of the agency’s recent achievements such as an additional funding package of up to £20m for the National Coalfields Programme. The funding will pay for the regeneration of further sites, in addition to the 101 currently in the programme that has grown from 57 sites in 1996. To date £300m in public sector funding has been invested in the Coalfields Programme, which has levered in a further £300m of private sector money.
He also spotlighted the successes of the Urban Regeneration Companies (URCs). A total of £900m of public sector funding has been invested into the programme – equally matched by private sector funding. But Higgins said that the challenge ahead was to increase the level of private sector investment, upping the ratio of public to private from 1:1 to 1:5.
“Across the regeneration industry, we need to continue to present private sector investors with more and more attractive propositions, to significantly increase levels of investment and accelerate the delivery of our programmes,” said David Higgins.
Mr Higgins reiterated the agency’s key achievements for the year 2004/05, which showed significant progress and included:
- 46 per cent increase in programme receipts
- 18 per cent increase in the agency’s investment development programme which stood at £483m for the year
- completion of more than 2,500 homes
- creation of 185,000 sq m of employment space
- private sector investment reached £480m against a target of £400m