We are delighted to note that following a site visit and design review panel session in July 2021 an outline proposal (21/01041/OUT) by Richborough Estates for a residential development comprising circa 200 dwellings, community use buildings and a country park has received officer recommendation for approval at Newcastle-under-Lyme District Council planning committee.
Baldwins Gate is a village located approximately 10km east of Newcastle-under-Lyme and the M6 Motorway. The village lies along the A53, which connects Newcastle, to the north east, with Market Drayton, to the south west. The M6 is within easy reach via the A53, providing links towards Birmingham to the south and Manchester to the north.
The site, which comprises Baldwins Gate Farm and associated agricultural land, lies within the open countryside and an Area of Landscape Restoration as indicated on the Local Development Framework Proposals Map. It is located outside of, but immediately adjacent to, the village settlement boundary.
With the emergence of the initial masterplan proposals, the Applicant design team (led by Urban Design Box) approached The Design Review Panel, which provides impartial expert advice to applicants and local authorities on design issues in relation to important new development schemes.
Following a site visit with the applicant, LPA and Design Review Panel teams; a collaborative review session was held where the emerging plans were presented. Following the review, a feedback document was provided by The Design Review Panel and the applicant and their design team thorough responded to the feedback received form the Design Review Panel, with the suggestions informing the submitted masterplan proposals.
Please click here to see a full copy of the submitted Design and Access Statement (DAS) which expands on the above.
Paragraph 133 on the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states that:
‘In assessing applications, local planning authorities should have regard to the outcome from these processes, including any recommendations made by design review panels.’
The early engagement and collaborative manner (incorporating participation of the local authority planning officer) in which the site visit and design review session was carried out is considered to represent best practice, and this has helped to inform the design proposal's and resulted in a recommendation for approval.
Charlotte Lewis, Design Director at Richborough Estates said:-
"‘We engaged with The Design Review Panel at an early stage, just as the concepts and ideas for our site at Baldwins Gate were coming together. The process was positive and provided constructive feedback, helping us to optimise our designs.
Design review is an instrumental part of strategic design. The Panel's feedback from architects, urban designers, landscape architects and engineers was invaluable."
In-person design review panel sessions incorporating site visits, as well as online design review panel sessions are available across England and can be booked on the following link: https://www.designreviewpanel.co.uk/panelcoverage