The redevelopment of the former Graylingwell hospital site on the outskirts of Chichester, West Sussex, is set to become one of the first major carbon-neutral developments in the UK. Subject to Communities and Local Government approval, and contract, housebuilder Galliford Try plc, in joint partnership with the Affinity Sutton Group housing association, has been confirmed as the preferred bidder to undertake the regeneration scheme.
The development is conceived as a landmark sustainable scheme providing high quality net zero-carbon building design, enabling Galliford Try to jointly pioneer, with English Partnerships, one of the first major carbon-neutral developments in the UK. The scheme will provide approximately 800 homes and commercial/community buildings of which 40 per cent will be designated ‘affordable’.
Greg Fitzgerald, Chief Executive of Galliford Try, said: “We are excited to be working again with English Partnerships to provide this pioneering carbon-neutral development in Chichester. This latest award confirms Galliford Try’s recognised expertise in the affordable housing and regeneration sectors, and we look forward to building a vibrant living and working space for the community.”
The news comes hot on the heels of an invitation to housebuilders from English Partnerships, the East of England Development Agency and Peterborough City Council to express interest in developing 450 environmentally sustainable homes at South Bank, Phase 1, (Glebe Road), Peterborough. The overture is the first step in the competition process that will end in spring 2008 with the appointment of a preferred developer for the site.
South Bank, Phase 1 – a seven-hectare area of brownfield land, owned by the three public sector bodies – is part of the regeneration of the South Bank of the River Nene in Peterborough and has been identified as the second site in the country to be suitable for development under English Partnerships’ Carbon Challenge - the first one is a 150-home site in Bristol.
The Carbon Challenge is an opportunity for developers to gain experience of building to the highest level of the government’s Code for Sustainable Homes, well before this zero-carbon standard becomes mandatory in 2016. It calls on developers to demonstrate that zero-carbon homes, combined with cutting edge building design and technology, are economically viable on a commercial scale.
Jayne Lomas, English Partnerships’ Carbon Challenge manager said: “To date, only single prototype homes have been built to these standards. No major housing schemes in this country have been able to achieve anything near the performance required in the Carbon Challenge competition. For all those who want to get ahead of the game, this site is a golden opportunity to gain experience and a competitive edge.”
English Partnerships will ensure that all homes are well built, well designed, of the best quality and are available to the widest cross section of the community as possible. Approximately six developers are expected to be short listed who will then be invited to submit a more substantive bid in response to a detailed design brief for the site.
