The Hill Group and L&Q Estates announce a maiden joint venture to promote a new community founded on the ‘Garden City’ principles, Westley Green, which comprises over 550 hectares (over 1,350 acres) of strategic land beyond the green belt, to the east of Cambridge.
The two leading development and place-making specialists were carefully selected by the landowner to promote this landmark scheme to the emerging Greater Cambridge and East Cambridgeshire Local Plans. If successful, the collaboration will then deliver strategic infrastructure, employment uses and multiple phases of new homes both themselves and through the wider market.
Andy Hill, CEO of the Hill Group, commented: “Westley Green is one of the largest strategic land opportunities to come to market in recent times and we are delighted to have been entrusted to progress it by the landowner. It has the opportunity to become a blueprint for sustainable living, providing low carbon, high quality housing and state-of-the-art infrastructure, whilst generating a wealth of vital employment and investment opportunities. We are very much looking forward to working with L&Q Estates, the Cambridge local authorities and surrounding communities to shape Westley Green into a positive legacy for the region.”
Ian Hardwick, managing director at L&Q Estates, said: “We have vast experience in steering projects of this nature through from conception to completion. Westley Green is unique by virtue of it being in one single ownership, which will serve to simplify delivery and enable us to create a truly exceptional new settlement. Key to our success is our willing and pro-active attitude to engaging with the communities in which we operate, and this will be no different. This is our first joint venture with Hill and Westley Green has the potential to be an exceptional development for residents and businesses.”
Craig Luttman, Deputy Group Director of Development and Sales at L&Q, explained: “Westley Green is a major step forward in our expansion into Cambridgeshire, accompanying 800 homes that are already planned on sites such as Darwin Green. Partnerships like this – involving like-minded organisations with a long-term commitment to sustainable growth and building beautiful places – underpin our group-wide plans to help tackle the housing crisis.
“It’s early days yet, but this project represents a major opportunity to bring investment and homes to the area, and we’re excited to see it progress.”
Located close to the hamlet of Six Mile Bottom, between Cambridge and Newmarket, the proposed sustainable new community will seek to build upon the Garden City principles, with an overarching focus on wellbeing, quality of life and placing nature at the heart of design.
All parties are striving towards the inclusion of significant on-site employment facilities, as well as flexi and co-working spaces, which could focus on Cambridge’s already established science, technology and agri-tech industries. The partnership is also exploring connecting to the Cambridgeshire Autonomous Metro (CAM) system and autonomous vehicle travel between the neighbourhoods in order to reduce car use.
With the potential to deliver up to 8,500 homes, there is a collective ambition to prioritise imaginative and beautiful architectural design, with an emphasis on creating genuinely affordable and low carbon housing. The supporting community facilities would seek to include schools, sporting facilities, playgrounds, shops and supermarkets and a wealth of public parkland and green open spaces.
Building on the region’s green credentials, this new community could also provide a comprehensive green infrastructure network, with net biodiversity gains that use zero-carbon and energy-positive technology alongside potential on-site energy generation.
