homebuilding.co.uk 39R
ecently,I attendeda presentationontwonew
housingdevelopmentsnearCambridge,my
hometown.It’sa hottopiclocallybecauseweare
at theeasternendoftheOxford-Cambridgegrowth
corridorandthereareplansfora newroad,a new
railwayandtensofthousandsofnewhomes.
TheCambridgeI grewupin wasa smallmarket
townwitha famousuniversity.Nowit resemblesa
giantdevelopmentsitewitha massof scienceparksto
thenorthandEurope’slargestmedicalcomplextaking
shapeto thesouth.Dottedaroundarenewcommunities
builtto copewiththeinfluxof jobs.Someareupand
running,rathermorearein thepipeline.
Thetwonewsettlementsin developmentareboth
locatedonformerWorldWarII airfields—neither
arein anideallocation.TheWaterbeachBarrackssite,
tothenorth,is at leastlinkedtoCambridgebyan
existingrailline,buttheonlyroadconnectionis via
thehopelesslyinadequateA10.TheBournAirfield
site,tothewest,hasbetterroadlinksbutnopublic
transportotherthana ruralbusservice.
Butperhapsthesetwoproposednewsettlements
couldpresentopportunitiesforself-builders?You
mighthopeso,asSouthCambridgeshire,thelocal
authorityinwhichbothsettlementsarelocated,has
becomea vanguardself-buildauthority.It runsan
activeself-buildregisterandhasa fewself-build
plotsavailableforsale.It couldcertainlydowith
a fewmore,sosurelythecouncilwillbeactively
trying to promote self-build as a viable form of
housing delivery?self-build
plots aRe
few and faR
between
opinion
It wouldappearnot.Theonlymentionofhousing
mixin eitherpresentationwastheobligatorynod
towardsmeetingtheaffordablehousingquotas,
a targetwithmoveablegoalpostswhichprivate
developershavebecomeadeptat minimising.Infact,
whatis moreremarkableis thatbothsitesarebeing
masterplannedbyprivatedeveloperswhoseaimhas
tobetomaximisetheprofitfromeachlocation.
IntheBournAirfieldpresentation,themaster
planneractuallysaidhelovesto playGodonthese
sites.A supermarkethere,a schoolthere,a health
centresomewherein between,andallof thempaidfor
bythesaleof privatelybuilthousing.Self-builders?
Whoneedsthem?Theyjustcomplicatematters.
Howdifferenttodevelopmentshappeningat
GravenHillin Bicester(whichI reportedonin detail
lastmonth).HereCherwellCouncilis setonbuilding
a self-buildbasedcommunity.It showsthatlocal
authoritiesdonothavetobowtotheprevailingethos
ofusingprofessionaldeveloperstodelivereverything
andthatit is possibletoat leastsharecontrolofhowa
placedevelopswithfutureresidents.
If thereis tobea bigger,brighterfuturefor
self-buildinthiscountry,thencouncilsinthehigh
growthareashavetobea littlebraverabouthow
theycommissionnewdevelopments.It’sonething
tosenddelegatestopartsofEuropetoseehow
theyhavemasteredcommunity-leddevelopment,
it appearstobequiteanothertoreplicateit ona
meaningful scale. Cherwell Council shows it can be
done, but thus far it’s a lonely pioneer.local
authorities
do not have
to bow to the
prevailing
ethos of using
professional
developers...
if there is to
be a bigger,
brighter
future for
self-build,
then local
authorities
need to be
a little braverby Mark Brinkley
...and this needs to change if we’re
to have communities that are fit for
their residents. But there is hope out
there, says builder Mark BrinkleyMarkbrinkley
is the author of
the ever-popular
Housebuilder’s
Bible and an
experienced
builder. He’s just
finished his latest
self-build