Sandleford Park East

White Peak Planning were first appointed by Bloor Homes and the Sandleford Farm Partnership in 2017 to coordinate the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the Outline Planning Application for Sandleford Park East, Newbury, West Berkshire. The application sought permission for up to 1,000 new homes, an extra care facility, a 2FE primary school, a Local Centre, a Country Park, and associated infrastructure.

This was a highly complex application, covering the majority of the site allocated in the West Berkshire Local Plan, and involved coordinating a large multi-disciplinary technical team. A separate planning application was being prepared concurrently by a third party for the remainder of the allocation, and we worked closely with their EIA coordinator to ensure consistency, particularly in cumulative impact assessments.

The application was refused and taken to appeal in 2021, where Chris Garratt appeared as Expert Witness on energy and sustainability. We successfully challenged the Council’s position that all dwellings must be zero carbon, demonstrating this was based on an outdated policy assumption. The appeal was called in by the Secretary of State and allowed in May 2022, granting Outline Planning Permission for a slightly reduced quantum of 850 homes and amending the energy condition accordingly.

Following the appeal, White Peak Planning were appointed as Project Manager and Planning Agent in Summer 2022 to progress the Reserved Matters and Discharge of Conditions applications. The site’s distinctive characteristics – two valleys, ancient and semi-natural woodland, and the requirement to deliver an extensive Country Park – present both opportunities and significant design challenges, including navigating complex topography, safeguarding sensitive habitats, and achieving a seamless interface between development and nature.

We have coordinated early-stage scheme design, organising Urban Design Code and Country Park workshops to secure agreement with Officers on key elements of the masterplan. As part of this process, we submitted and secured approval for four non-material amendments to the Outline Permission, providing greater delivery certainty and supporting our client’s commercial objectives.

Most recently, we have been working with the clients and project team to discharge pre-commencement planning conditions, enabling the submission of the first Reserved Matters application for primary onsite infrastructure in April 2025, which is currently under consideration by West Berkshire Council.