Major plans submitted to build 255 homes on farmland the size of 28 football pitches in Daventry

Plans have been submitted to build up to 255 homes on land west of Ashby Road in Daventry.

The outline application has been submitted to West Northamptonshire Council by KSW Daventry Limited and Christ Church.

According to plans, the proposed development would cover around 20 hectares of farmland – equivalent in area to around 28 football pitches – to the west of the A361, next to the existing Micklewell Park development. The main access would be from Ashby Road.

The plans include a mix of detached, semi-detached and terraced homes, ranging from two to three storeys.

Up to 25 per cent of the homes would be affordable housing, equivalent to up to 64 properties. The precise mix of affordable rent and shared ownership homes has not yet been decided.

Around 12.4 hectares of the site – about 60 per cent – is proposed as open space. This would include a central park and play area, community orchards, allotments, landscaped areas and space for wildlife.

The applicant said: “Our vision is a new 21st century contemporary community that relates well to the new Micklewell Park development to the east, forming a logical extension to the north of Daventry.

“The new development will be a sustainable one that champions walking and cycling with improved connectivity to local services and facilities and Daventry’s well-established active travel infrastructure.

"A substantial amount of land will be left as open space to support health and wellbeing, recreation, local food production, biodiversity and wildlife habitats.”

The planning statement goes on to say the development would help address the council’s housing needs and housing land supply position. It says: “Recent appeal decisions support that the council cannot demonstrate a five year housing land supply. Therefore, the proposed development would make a valuable contribution towards addressing the council’s housing land supply shortfall and meeting its overall housing need. It would contribute towards achieving the Government’s objective of ’significantly boosting the supply of homes’.

“The delivery of housing through the proposed development should be afforded very substantial weight in favour of the application.”

West Northamptonshire Council's consultation deadline for comments on the application is November 27. The council's target date for a decision is December 14.