Developer explores 6,000-home masterplan for Oxfordshire site

Since Dorchester Living acquired the site in 2009, it has delivered more than 1,200 new mixed-tenure homes.

The developer said the emerging masterplan proposals would provide 6,000 new homes with a mix of tenures, including affordable housing, as well as a new central park equivalent in size to New York’s Central Park.

Paul Silver, chief executive of Dorchester Living, pointed to the new government’s focus on what can be achieved through development on brownfield land.

He said: “In recent weeks, the new government has made clear that it is committed to enabling a major housebuilding and infrastructure programme to deliver the homes and facilities that the country needs.

“A focus on brownfield-first development and the provision of high-quality, mixed-tenure homes sits at the heart of this, and we at Dorchester Living fully support its ambition and we are ready to play our role in helping to achieve it.

“There can be few better examples of what can be achieved when you combine a large brownfield site with strategic plan-making and the close cooperation and engagement of multiple stakeholders and the local community than Heyford Park.”

He added that Oxfordshire had a “crippling housing crisis” which was “only getting worse”.

“Heyford Park is perfectly placed to accommodate more growth – being a disused airfield – and our masterplan would not only deliver thousands of new mixed-tenure homes, but also jobs, commercial space and major new sustainable transport infrastructure.

“Equally important, it would breathe new life into the site, which has a vibrant military past. We are looking forward to working with Cherwell District Council as we further develop our masterplan proposals,” he said.

Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister, has promised to deliver 40% affordable homes on new developments as part of Labour’s plan for a new generation of New Towns.

These plans will include a New Towns Code, which means that each new development must deliver:

• Affordable housing: a gold-standard target of 40% affordable, including a mix of social, council and other tenures
• Characterful design: robust design codes for beautiful buildings and tree-lined streets that fit in with nearby areas and pay attention to local history and identity
• Fit-for-the-future layouts: high-density housing to efficiently use available land, with good links to town and city centres
• Infrastructure first: guarantees that new houses mean new transport links, healthcare and schools
• Green spaces: access to nature and parks, embedded greenery and new facilities for kids to play and families to exercise

These developments aim to echo the New Towns built by the first Labour government after World War II, and is a crucial part of the party’s plan to build homes fit for the future.

Ms Rayner has pledged to work in partnership with “responsible”’ developers willing to deliver affordable homes accompanied by green spaces, schools and transport links.

Overall, the government has pledged to build 1.5 million homes over the next five-year parliamentary term.