Why Westley Green?

Planning

Westley Green will help to deliver much-needed housing in the local area and will support the regional economy through a significant provision of on-site employment. It has good connections to strategic infrastructure and unusually for a site of this scale it is in single ownership. Furthermore the site also lies outside the Cambridge green belt.

We are promoting the site to the emerging Greater Cambridge local plan and any subsequent review of the East Cambridgeshire Local Plan.

Community

We know that homes are not just places to live and offices are not just places to work. Investing in the community and building relationships between people, both on the new site and across the wider area, is of paramount importance to us. 

We will be engaging with the local community and stakeholders at all stages of the planning process and are seeking to promote social inclusion, genuine community ownership and stewardship.

Connectivity

The site and the surrounding area already enjoys good links to Cambridge and Newmarket, but Westley Green can help to create a gateway between the two.

The team is already exploring the opportunity to connect the site with the proposed Cambridgeshire Autonomous Metro (CAM). There is also the potential for autonomous vehicle travel between the neighbourhoods which will make up Westley Green, in order to reduce car use.

A development of this scale could resolve existing transport issues too, for example by helping to upgrade the A11/A14 junction to the north of the site, improving public transport and developing additional cycle and walking routes to key destinations within the area.

Accessible Green Space

The land is currently in private ownership, with limited access to the public. The proposals will create high quality areas of open green space which can be enjoyed by everyone.

Formal and informal areas will be developed, including parks, outdoor sports facilities, meadows and orchards, with green routes taking residents and visitors between them. Enhancing habitats will bring species back to the area and increase the site’s biodiversity.

Living Well

Westley Green can promote physical health and mental wellbeing by putting the principle that nature is good for us at the heart of the scheme whilst also incorporating high quality sports facilities.

The ambition is to make Westley Green a healthy and happy place to live. 

The new community will deliver exceptional levels of sustainability, reducing the cost of running homes and commercial areas for the benefit of all concerned.

Homes for the Future

Covid-19 has highlighted that homes and communities need to be flexible in order to meet future needs and create a better work-life balance for residents. 

Architectural design is fundamental to this, but so is access to co-working spaces, safe places for children to play and excellent broadband infrastructure. All of these things and more are already being actively considered for Westley Green.

We are also exploring the opportunity for on-site energy generation in order to enhance the green credentials of the site.

Work

The economy of the area is diverse. There is a high concentration of science and technology based employment in the area; the location has a strong and diverse agricultural industry; to the east lies Newmarket, the home of horse racing. Space is needed for new and emerging industries such as agri-tech.

At Westley Green we want to embrace technology and the economy of the future, not only for work, but also to influence the design of the buildings, so that the new community is prepared for and resilient to the effects of Climate Change.

As well as providing well-connected employment space, Westley Green will promote emerging working practices and co-working areas that accommodate more flexible working patterns.