hands of a profit-driven organisation that spares little
thought for the environment or the community.
“Purchasers benefit by having input to the design and
specification of their house that will almost certainly be of
a higher specification than that delivered by a mass builder,
the quality of build will be better, and the environmental
impact will be lower. There’s a benefit to being part of a new
neighbourhood – the buyer’s input is having a direct effect,
and social cohesion is increased.”
The landowner’s perspective:
Pete Thompson of Thompson’s Farm in Essex, a farming
landowner who is currently developing Oakley Orchards,
a nine acre site, in collaboration with enabling developer
Village Makers, says, “Essentially the landowner stays
involved, selling serviced plots to the homebuyer directly
who simultaneously enters into a contract with the builder
to deliver the home of their choice.
“The result is that both new and existing communities are
more integrated and the key stakeholder, the landowner,
is incentivised to support this. Essentially, there are better
outcomes for all parties. “At Oakley Orchards we have been
granted outline planning permission for 51 houses, and
detailed permission for a village hall, school car park and a
doctor’s surgery.
Having engaged with various conventional house builders
we concluded that none could offer the quality of
development we would like in the village – or stick to the
‘extras’ we are seeking to include such as the surgery, village
hall, new footpaths, allotments and green space. They all
also wanted to squeeze more homes onto the site. Having
visited lots of other developments in the district and beyond,
it seemed to me that things can be done better. As a result
we are staying involved and have commissioned Village
Makers to deliver a custom build development with us.
“At Oakley Orchards we are looking to create a beautiful
new neighbourhood which enhances the local built
environment, brings new vitality to the village of Great
Oakley and is more eco-friendly than the mundane estates
which are generally built by volume house-builders.”
In conclusion, custom build collaborations between
landowners and enabling developers can make a genuine
difference to the way that housing is delivered in the UK
by creating better quality neighbourhoods which benefit
both the environment and the local community. There are
potential financial benefits to the landowner who will retain
the lion’s share of the development profit. This of course
provides them with the opportunity to invest in the local
community.
Oakley Orchards: www.oakleyorchards.com
Village Makers: www.village-makers.com
Thompson’s Farm: www.gthompsons.co.uk