Lower Berse Farm Consultation

WELCOME TO OUR COMMUNITY CONSULTATION

Redrow Homes | Lower Berse Farm, Wrexham

WELCOME

Thank you for taking the time to visit our website. Redrow is pleased to share plans for a new community-led development on land at Lower Berse Farm. The proposals include a modern, residential community in the region of 1,500 homes, alongside green open spaces for recreational areas. The proposals also include a provisional site for a new primary school and a welcoming, accessible community centre for the local community to utilise.

Please take some time to view the proposals for Lower Berse Farm in greater detail by reading through the materials provided on this website. Should you have any further questions, or would like to give your feedback on the plans, please contact us using the methods listed under the ‘Have your say’ tab.

THE MASTERPLAN

VIRTUAL EXHIBITION

OUR PROPOSALS:

Delivering a strategic development at Lower Berse Farm, which will create a new community-led neighbourhood, delivering in the region of 1500 homes
Creating attractive green spaces, parks & play areas, as well as retaining and providing natural assets such as trees, hedgerows and water features
Utilising the historic Lower Berse Farmhouse, whilst retaining and enhancing its heritage, to provide a community centre with possible amenities, such as shops, a nursery, a café and other facilities
Creating easy access to the site via improving road access to the A525 Ruthin Road and enhancing active travel routes with pedestrian and cycle links throughout the site.
Careful consideration given to the future needs of the community with site provision for a modern, spacious new primary school included within the proposals.
Designed to incorporate areas of green open space wherever possible and create landscaped communal areas.

HOUSING NEED

Wrexham, as well as the wider nation, is facing a housing crisis. There is a chronic shortage of new homes, with the average first-time buyer in the UK now 34 years old; an increase of five years since 1990. With large deposits, a shortage of affordable housing and a reduction in lending, a growing number of prospective buyers have been forced to return to living with their parents or continuing to rent. Put simply, not enough homes are being built.

In its emerging Local Development Plan, Wrexham County Borough Council highlighted a need for 7,750 new homes to be built across the Borough by 2028. Whilst expected to be adopted this year, the plan has suffered significant setbacks despite the Inspector’s report in February 2023 finding the plan sound subject to a number of changes. The status of the emerging Local Development Plan is now likely to be resolved in the latter half of 2023.

We are confident that the proposed development at Lower Berse Farm is essential in meeting existing and future housing need – as demonstrated by the council’s own housing needs assessment – delivering in the region of 1,500 dwellings. Whilst the land is currently used for agricultural purposes, Lower Berse Farm has been identified as a key location for development in the emerging Local Development Plan. This site will enable Redrow to deliver much-needed new homes to Wrexham, whilst also protecting other green field sites across the Borough from speculative development.

In accordance with policy in the emerging Local Development Plan, Redrow are proposing to provide affordable housing on the site at a level of 15%, with the exact mix of tenure to be finalised based on local housing need.

SITE LOCATION

The site is located on a 72.85 hectare (180 acre) piece of land known as ‘Lower Berse Farm’, south of Ruthin Road. The site is draft allocated for housing in Wrexham Borough Council’s Emerging Development Plan, which requires 7,750 new homes to be built across the Borough by 2028. Our proposals will help to address this target, providing a significant proportion of the properties required.

LOCAL TRANSPORT LINKAGES

The site is situated close to great transport links which offer quick and easy access to Wrexham town centre, situated just a 30 minute walk or six minute drive away. The closest bus stop, located on Croensnewydd road, is just 400m from the central point of the site and both Wrexham Central and Wrexham General Train Stations are located within 2km of the site. The public transport provision offers convenient links within Wales and across the North West of England, allowing future residents to access a wide range of areas for leisure or work in relatively short periods of time.

DESIGN & SITE CONSIDERATIONS

Our development has been carefully designed to respond to the heritage and history of the surrounding area, building on the unique past to provide a better, more sustainable future for all.

Traffic and Highways

The site is situated close by to the A525 and is accessible off Ruthin Road, creating a quick and easy connection to Wrexham City Centre to the east.

In line with our commitment to achieving Net Zero by 2050, Redrow is striving to create a ‘walkable neighbourhood’. We are considering the opportunity to close Berse Lane and Homestead Lane to vehicles, instead creating ‘Greenways’ for pedestrians and cyclists, as well as promoting linkages to existing public transport. Click here to read our full Transport Assessment.

Noise

A detailed noise survey has been undertaken to assess the potential implications of existing and potential sources of noise in the vicinity of the proposed houses and primary school. Road noise from the A483, and to a lesser extent the other roads surrounding the site, is the main issue, but it is clear that with appropriate design, relevant standards can be met to provide a quiet environment for residents and pupils at the primary school. The proposed wastewater treatment plant would be subject to controls on noise emissions to ensure that this could also be operated without disturbance. Click here to read our full Noise Impact Assessment.

Flood Risk

A ‘Flood Consequences Assessment & Drainage Strategy’ has been prepared alongside the proposals. The strategy identified that much of the site is at a very low risk of flooding. Areas with a higher risk will be addressed through the creation of areas for the storage of water across the site. Ground investigations indicate that infiltration techniques appear feasible in a number of locations throughout the site. In such locations, Redrow will provide individual property soakaways, as well as permeable surfacing on private driveways. Where such techniques are not feasible, surface water runoff will be discharged to watercourses crossing the site and the River Clywedog.

Archaeology and Heritage

Framed by 14th and 15th century timber, we recognise the historic, aesthetic and evidential value of Lower Berse Farmhouse and are committed to retaining and enhancing its historical features. Any buildings erected near the farmhouse will be sensitively integrated and no higher than one storey. Ridge heights will also be varied to reflect the character of the historic barns. The existing pond and former orchard will be retained and enhanced as public open space, with a play provision installed to provide an attractive feature for users and adjacent residents. Click here to read the full report.

Wastewater Treatment Facility

The existing wastewater treatment facility for Wrexham cannot at present accept any additional wastewater flows due to problems with phosphorous pollution. Consequently, a new state of the art treatment facility is proposed for the site that would clean the wastewater, including removing phosphorous. If the problems at the existing Wrexham treatment works are appropriately resolved, then the on-site works would not be required and additional housing would be provided as an alternative.

Planning Documentation

In addition to the documents and planning reports summarised above, you can view the rest of the associated planning documents by clicking here.

REGISTER YOUR INTEREST

If you are interested in a new home in this part of Wrexham we would be delighted to hear from you. Please register your interest below and Redrow will keep you updated as the plans progress.

What type of home are you interested in? Please tick all that apply:
Two bedroom Three bedroom Four bedroom Five or more bedroom

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Please tick here if you would like to be kept updated on the proposals for Lower Berse Farm as they progress

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ABOUT US

Redrow; discover a better way to live
Redrow is a leading, premium housebuilder dedicated to providing people with a ‘better way to live.’ For nearly 50 years, we have designed award winning homes and neighbourhoods across England and Wales which complement the lifestyle of our customers.
Inspired by the past but designed for the future, our award winning collections offer the best of both worlds. Fusing modern, open plan living with the traditional exterior features of the Arts and Crafts movement, our customers love our perfect home-life balance.
From garden villages to lifestyle homes to urban luxury apartments, there’s something for everyone.
Our commitments
We are committed to creating a ‘better way to live’ not only within our developments but for the communities in which we build. To do so, we commit ourselves to building sustainably and encouraging economic growth.
Sustainability
Responding to the climate crisis is our highest environmental priority, and our primary focus is to decarbonise our business across the whole chain. We have set an ambitious target to achieve science based Net-Zero by 2050 across our operations, the homes we build, and the operations within our supply chain.
We are partners with the Supply Chain Sustainability School, an award winning initiative providing free learning and development to help our supply chain partners address sustainability issues. The school offers free practical support to all Redrow suppliers and sub-contractors in the form of e-learning modules, training workshops and self-assessments. Since becoming partners with the school, over 4,700 free resources have been accessed by more than 300 Redrow suppliers.
We use energy efficient materials, designed to improve daylight and solar gains, and work with Wildlife Trusts to develop and implement a pioneering new approach to enhance biodiversity on our developments. Through our collaboration with Wildlife Trusts it is Redrow’s ambition to go beyond achieving a biodiversity net gain, and our ‘Nature for People’ strategy has been design to explore how we can maximise our biodiversity net gain targets at each one of our sites. You can find out more about our strategy here.
To date, more than 1,205 acres of land on our developments is green space or landscaped communal areas and we are continually exploring options to increase this figure as new developments are brought forward.
Furthermore, our site includes provision for a primary school site. If constructed, the school will further support sustainable development by keeping children closer to home during the school run.
Economic
Our site looks to encourage the development of this area of Wrexham through increased footfall, as more people move into the area local spend will subsequently increase in local shops and on local services. This spend will foster a stronger local economy, supporting a wide range of existing businesses in the area, whilst encouraging prospective businesses to choose to move into the area.
The economic benefits of the site will also be apparent during the construction period, with Redrow committed to sourcing materials from local businesses and traders. This strategy will be pursued, not just to source locally distinct materials for design purposes but also, to assist the economic development of the area. Utilising local materials will result in regional providers securing substantial workloads in assisting Redrow, supporting industry in the area wherever there is the opportunity to. Redrow also expect our development to create hundreds of new job roles, and we always support and encourage apprenticeships.

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