Hackenthorpe

This freehold former social club and grounds had been unsuccessfully marketed several years earlier. Following a review of the archived information and direct discussions with the landowner, it became clear that a transaction could be negotiated.

Despite being a brownfield site unallocated for housing, the site was acquired unconditionally with private funding. A key factor underpinning the at-risk acquisition was the local authority’s increasing shortfall in its five-year housing land supply.

The initial intention was to develop the site for private entry-level housing, but it quickly became apparent that the local housing market was stronger than initially anticipated and that the opportunity sat outside the investor’s original starter-home market position.

Architects were appointed and the usual site surveys, technical, engineering and environmental investigations were undertaken. Specifications were prepared and a tender for site clearance was issued.

With the local market improving, an outline planning application was prepared using the minimum technical information necessary to establish the principle and parameters of development. The final high-density layout maximised land utilisation. Although house types and a well-developed indicative scheme had been prepared, these were deliberately omitted from the consent to avoid unnecessarily limiting a future developer’s options over layout, house types, design and materials.

The Local Planning Authority was resistant to this approach and pushed for a less dense indicative layout, but the maximalist approach was maintained and ultimately achieved.

To secure approval, the negotiated description of the proposal shifted from a fixed number of units to a more flexible residential development framework, adhering to the upper end of the LPA’s Core Strategy density targets of 40–60 dwellings per hectare rather than the indicative site layout.

Transport and tram links were leveraged to demonstrate the sustainable location and design of the proposal. The LPA Highways Department agreed to the final road entrance layout, eliminating the need for subsequent Section 278 negotiations. A sustainable urban drainage (SUDS) scheme was incorporated into the design to address drainage requirements.

Once satisfactory planning consent had been secured, the site was cleared and graded to development levels.

A discreet marketing programme produced a number of offers from registered providers, the local authority and private developers. Protracted negotiations with a registered provider ultimately stalled, and a sale was concluded with a regional housebuilder.