Plans for 217 homes on land the size of 22 football pitches in Northampton set to be approved

Plans to build hundreds of new homes on land the size of 22 football pitches in Northampton are set to be given the green light.

Proposals to build 217 houses on 11.76 hectares of brownfield land north of Ransome Road, in Far Cotton, are set to be approved at a West Northants Council (WNC) planning committee next week (Tuesday, May 21).

The applicant, Tilia Homes, in partnership with Homes England, say the properties will consist of two to four-bed homes, varying in height from two to three storeys, and will be presented in a mix of terraced, semi-detached, detached dwellings, and apartments.

Planning papers say the proposed housing mix for the area includes 193 market dwellings, comprising 24 two-bedroom, 131 three-bedroom, and 38 four-bedroom homes, alongside 24 affordable units (11 per cent), consisting of two-bedroom apartments, all offered through shared ownership.

Plans go on to say the site will primarily be accessed from Ransome Road.

All properties will have allocated off-street parking, with 1.5 spaces per apartment and typically two spaces for each property. Additionally, there will be 52 unallocated visitor parking spaces along streets within the site and 15 along Ransome Road to the south of the proposed parkland. In total, 454 allocated parking spaces will be provided, according to plans. Furthermore, there will be 69 visitor parking spaces and 16 parking spaces to the south of the open space along Ransome Road.

A park and play space is also proposed.

Independent councillor Julie Davenport (Delapre and Rushmere ward) continues to voice concerns with the access to the development via the congested Ransome Road.

Councillor Davenport said: “No one is against the development. We desperately need housing. It is the access road to the houses that is a huge problem. Ransome Road has parking on each side of the road, which means only one car can get by at a time. It leads to an industrial area that has trucks coming and going along that narrow road. There is also the ASDA supermarket’s customers and delivery lorries using that road, so how can they possibly expect a few hundred more cars to use this narrow, poorly maintained road I don’t know. Residents are not happy. They are not NIMBYs, they are happy to have the development but we were all under the impression that the cars from the development would exit via the University Road, across the bridge to the Bedford Road.”

The Far Cotton and Delapre Community Council also objects to the proposal on several grounds, including the unsuitability of access via Ransome Road, the potential environmental impacts, insufficient infrastructure to sustain the development, inadequate on-site parking facilities, and the absence of community amenities either on-site or through offsite mitigation.

Eleven objections were raised by residents, citing concerns such as increased traffic impact, congestion at junctions, lack of open space, and potential ecological and health impacts.

WNC Highways has no objection to the proposal, as previous queries have been satisfactorily addressed. They suggest imposing a set of conditions.

A spokeswoman for Tilia Homes Central previously addressed the traffic concerns on Ransome Road. The spokeswoman said: “As a community and eco-conscious homebuilder, Tilia Homes, working closely with Homes England and West Northamptonshire Council, has ensured accessibility by means of a range of sustainable modes of transport, as well as promoting safe and convenient walking routes to surrounding areas, thus mitigating material impact on the normal operation or safety of the road network.”

The NHS says it has no objection to the proposal, provided a contribution of £400k is made towards enhancing primary healthcare capacity, directly correlating with the population increase resulting from the proposed development.

The Development Management also has no objection to the proposal, provided the following contributions are made: £859,444 towards Early Years, £777,399 towards Primary Education, £884,518 towards Secondary Education, £128,778 towards Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), and £50,017 towards Libraries.

The Bedford Borough Council expresses concern regarding safeguarding the railway line route between Bedford and Northampton.