Russell Homes has secured outline planning approval for a new 265-home scheme in Lees, Oldham. Full planning permission has also been granted for a £3.5million link road between Knowls Lane and Ashbrook Road as part of the hybrid application.
The 39-acre site at Knowls Lane has been allocated for housing since 2006 under Oldham’s local plan. Delivery of the new link road to ease congestion for the town – a long-held ambition for the local authority – will be one of the benefits of the new development.
Planning and design support for Russell Homes was provided by Barton Wilmore and IBI Group. Procurement and construction of the road will be managed by Russell Homes’ sister company Russells Construction, and is expected to begin in January 2020.
A detailed planning submission is due to be submitted in early 2020 which will outline the housing mix, of which around 60 homes – 23 per cent – will be affordable. Subject to permission and conditions, construction would begin later that year.
A site of just under an acre to the south east of the site will be transferred to the adjacent St Agnes CE Primary School to allow for any future expansion of the school. The development will also incorporate an area of enhanced public open space and a children’s play area.
Daniel Kershaw, Russell Homes director, said: “This development will provide a much needed supply of new homes for the area, helping many local families get onto the property ladder for the first time. There will be a mix of sizes and styles to cater for a variety of requirements from people wanting to move up, and we will be working with a housing association to provide a mixture of tenures including homes for rent and shared ownership.
“The development will also unlock funding for the link road, which has long been an ambition of the local authority and will serve to ease pressure on the town centre. This scheme will deliver that amenity at no cost to the taxpayer.”
The approval adds to the Russell Homes’ upcoming pipeline which also includes a 96-home scheme at Littlebrough in Rochdale. Construction of Stubley Meadows off New Lane is due to start on site later this year with homes released for sale towards the end of 2020.
Russell Homes is currently on site with four North West housing developments delivering a total of 300 properties: Saltersford Gardens in Holmes Chapel; Cedar Gardens in Heywood; Greenbooth Village in Norden; and Bower Brook Gardens 2 in Widnes, which is a joint venture with Halton Housing.
Daniel Kershaw added: “We’re very pleased to be bringing forward two new Russell Homes sites at Littleborough and now Lees, to add to our current developments in Rochdale and Cheshire.
“The business is building for the future, putting together the right team to help us to deliver high quality new build homes in locations people really want to live, and we are always looking for new development opportunities right across the North West.”
