Below you will find answers to the questions most commonly asked about the proposals for the development of Thingoe Hill.
If you have any questions not answered here, please get in touch.
The Site
At City & Suburban Homes, we specialise in the acquisition of brownfield sites that we see having real potential, with the ambition of transforming the site and delivering development that truly benefits the local community. This site has been vacant for around 5 years, and is currently being wasted in terms of its true potential. Given its excellent location – close to the centre of Bury St Edmunds and the Bury St Edmunds train station – we saw an opportunity to remove an eyesore from the local area and in its place, deliver much-needed high quality new home
Our proposals have been positively received by West Suffolk Council during our initial pre-application discussions, following careful consideration of our plans and how they align to various Council policies, including on sustainability, spatial strategy, design, strategic growth and settlement hierarchy, amongst more.
Sustainability
The West Suffolk Local Development Plan sets out that redevelopment of brownfield sites is favourable, in line with the NPPF guidelines. The NPPF states that redeveloping brownfield sites that deliver identified local needs should also be supported. Redevelopment on this site is therefore considered sustainable and favourable, as it makes use of a previously developed site rather than building on an area of greenfield or green belt. As of July 2020, Bury St Edmunds had only delivered 94% of the homes required under the Council’s 5-year housing supply, meaning housing is an identified local need.
The Thingoe Hill development is located just 400m from the Bury St Edmunds train station, making public transport more accessible to the future residents. Our proposals also include 132 secure and covered cycle storage spaces, further encouraging residents to use sustainable transport methods and also ensuring they are able to make this decision comfortably knowing their bikes are safe. The proposals also include plans to improve pedestrian and cycle connectivity from the site to encourage these sustainable modes of travel.
Housing
Bury St Edmunds currently has a shortfall of housing, only delivering 94% of the current homes needed in the local area. This shortfall means that the local housing need is not being met, and the Council must therefore deliver more housing in line with its policies. The delivery of Thingoe Hill would support the Council in demonstrating the delivery of additional housing in line with its policies, delivering much-needed homes for local people.
The development will need to address the Council’s requirement for affordable housing. The Local Plan requires 35% affordable housing provision. The applicant is currently undertaking viability work to confirm the amount of affordable housing that can be delivered, and this will be discussed further with the Council.
In line with the current housing need, Thingoe Hill will deliver a mix of 1, 2 and 3-bedroom flats. At present, the need for 2 and 3-bedroom flats is the highest in the area, and the Thingoe Hill development will provide 70% 2 and 3-bedroom properties to meet local need. The sites accessible location also makes the number of 1-bedroom flats proposed appropriate.
All units will be provided with private amenity space in the form of private terrace or balcony.
Local Considerations
The Thingoe Hill development has been carefully designed to ensure it fits with the existing landscape and surrounding area. The proposals have been drafted in accordance with the Joint Development Management Policies Document, which ensures developments recognise and address the key features, characteristics, townscape character, local distinctiveness and special qualities of the area. Thingoe Hill has therefore been designed to respect and enhance the built form of the surrounding area that is in-keeping with the design characteristics of the surrounding properties. The scheme has also been fully tested to ensure that there will be no adverse impact on the residential amenity and quality of the adjacent Maltings development, with appropriate separation distances and building layout to ensure no overlooking or loss of privacy.
Our proposals are considered to full meet the aspirations of West Suffolk Council’s Development Plan policies in respect of design
The current site is occupied by an unattractive, vacant and disused industrial building which is damaging the local character of the area. Our proposals are seeking to remove this eyesore from the community, and in its place, deliver the Thingoe Hill development. The Thingoe Hill development will be an attractive new community, creating new green spaces at the site and a high quality built form that will blend in with the local character of Bury St Edmunds.
This site is in a sensitive location, however initial noise assessments have been undertaken and have found there to be no initial concerns regarding noise. There are no significant constrains to development on the site at this stage. We will be undertaking more detailed assessments ahead of submitting the planning application, with the necessary mitigation measures outlined and incorporated, in line with planning guidelines. The results from all technical surveys will be submitted alongside the planning application to ensure transparency.
Transport & Access
The Thingoe Hill development will deliver parking spaces on a 1:1 provision, meaning each flat will have 1 allocated parking space. The development will also include an additional 6 disabled parking bays.
As part of our commitment to encouraging sustainable transport, we are keen to encourage sustainable transport methods where possible. However, we understand that sustainable transport options such as cycling and public transport are not accessible for everyone, hence we decided that including 1 parking space per flat would deliver on our commitments to sustainability whilst taking individual preferences and suitability into account.
The site benefits from very close proximity to the Bury St Edmunds train station (just 400m), offering access to a range of key locations including Cambridge, Ipswich and Peterborough. The site is also considered to have very good accessibility to other public transport networks, including bus routes.
