A detailed planning application for 85 new homes in the Canalside area of Wichelstowe has been submitted by architects Metropolitan Workshops on behalf of Swindon Borough Council. The choice of 1, 2, 3 and 4 bed homes for sale will be located to the north of the existing Waitrose store and be situated along both banks of the canal.
Subject to planning permission being granted, construction will start early next year and the first residents should move in during Autumn 2018. Site preparation will commence this month with advanced works to improve the canal.
The design of the homes has been led by architects Metropolitan Workshop, who were voted Building Design’s 2017 Architect of the Year in the masterplanning and public realm category. Working in partnership with local architects Stonewood Design who themselves won the Small Project Architect of the Year award in 2016 the proposals will deliver a unique, and quality, housing offer for Swindon.
The homes will be set in four semi-private landscaped garden squares to maximise the views over the canal. Each home will have its own private garden and terrace but will also have access to the shared communal gardens, places to gather socially and for children to play safely.
Cllr Toby Elliott, Swindon Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and Sustainability, said: “Earlier in the year I promised diggers in the ground at Wichelstowe; and we are already seeing this. This high quality development sets a benchmark for where I want the rest of Middle and West Wichel to go. Swindon deserves the very best quality homes and this development delivers this in spades. These plans are testament to the hard work of my team over many months.”
“The new development is the next phase in our ambitious Wichelstowe project. It is ideally located adjacent to the heart of the district centre; with the Waitrose store, new secondary school under construction, a new Hall & Woodhouse pub/restaurant currently in the planning process and a proposed primary school.”
Matt Vaudin, Partner at Stonewood Design, said: ‘Wichelstowe provides a great opportunity to design something special and different. The canalside location is unique for Swindon, and the brief allowed us to challenge the status quo for local housing. Having been born and bred in the town, and now with a local architectural practice, the aspirations for the project are very close to my heart.’
Nick Phillips, Associate Director at Metropolitan Workshop, said: ‘The layout offers opportunities to physically connect the gardens with the canal, further reinforcing the objective of creating a walkable neighbourhood with easy access to the facilities within Wichelstowe, the wider town and the surrounding countryside.’
If approved planning permission should be granted in December.
