Plans for Zero Carbon Homes to be Unveiled

6th January 2009

Proposals to transform part of Peterborough’s South Bank with zero carbon homes are to be unveiled next week at Peterborough United Football Club.

The pPod Consortium – a partnership comprising Morris Homes and Gentoo Group and Browne Smith Baker architects – will be in Peterborough to discuss its plans for the 17-acre (seven ha) site, with the local community.

pPod Consortium was named preferred developer of Peterborough South Bank Phase One following a national competition to turn the site, which lies adjacent Peterborough United Football Club, into a development of 344 new high-quality and environmentally-friendly homes built to Level 6 of the Code for Sustainable Homes - 35 per cent of which will be affordable. There will also be open spaces and areas which could be used by shops and the community.

The proposals that led to pPod being named as preferred developer will be available to view and discuss at the Executive Suite of Peterborough United Football Ground on Wednesday 14 January between 11am and 7pm.

Martin Edmunds from lead developer Morris Homes said: “We are very excited about this event – the first time our proposals for South Bank Phase One will be seen by the public.
“Being able to create something truly visionary is a tremendous opportunity and we are looking forward to the next stages of the project.

“We would urge everyone who can to come along, see what we have designed and ask us your questions and tell us what you think.”

The South Bank Phase One project forms part of the planned £1billion regeneration of
Peterborough, and will assist house builders to develop the skills and technology needed to meet the environmental goals being set by Government for new housing development and, in particular, will act as a testing ground for the new guidelines for building environmentally-friendly homes.

The site was the former headquarters of Elliott Group, and was brought forward for the Carbon Challenge – a government initiative to help the housebuilding industry respond to climate change – by land-owners English Partnerships (now part of the Homes and Communities Agency), the East of England Development Agency (EEDA) and Peterborough City Council.

The proposals also include an area with orchards and allotments, canopied walkways, 650 sq m of retail space and 614 sq m of community space, as well as a community cafe that will sell locally-produced goods, with food production encouraged by the inclusion of an edible garden.

Allan Thompson, from Consortium partner Gentoo Homes, added: “Gentoo are a people and property business and as such realise the importance of effective consultation and the benefits this can bring. At Peterborough, this is seen as a vital part of the overall development process given the scale and nature of the Consortium’s proposals for a new and exciting zero carbon community.”

The Carbon Challenge is a Communities and Local Government initiative to accelerate the house building industry’s response to climate change, which is being delivered by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA).

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