Developer Croudace Homes awaits West Berkshire Council’s Local Pan strategy amid 200-home plan withdrawal

A developer has withdrawn its outline proposal for 200 homes in Thatcham.

The proposal, from Croudace Homes, for 200 dwellings and an 80-bed care home off Bowling Green Road, was withdrawn in July.

Croudace Homes says it is awaiting West Berkshire Council’s next move in relation to its Local Plan Review for housing in the district.

The Local Plan Review outlines the district council’s planning ambitions for the next 17 years.

The housing allocation for Thatcham became an area of contention following the proposal of 2,500 homes for north east Thatcham – which was later reduced to 1,500.

In response to this, Croudace Homes joined forces with another developer in 2022 to propose a scheme for 1,175 homes across two different locations in Thatcham – which it viewed as an alternative scheme.

The proposal, with Colthrop Village Consortium, comprised two separate planning developments, one at Henwick Park and another at Colthrop Village, with the latter also providing a new road bridge over the railway line.

The plans for 1,500 homes in north east Thatcham emerged victorious for a period as the then Conservative-run council moved the Local Plan through to its final stages.

But, following an administration change post-local elections in May, the Liberal Democrats have gone back to the drawing board – sparking hope for Croudace Homes.

“It seems like things are changing for the positive,” said strategic land promoter at Croudace Homes George Hopkins.

“We are looking to see what happens in the next few months with the local council.

“We will see what they are going to do with their Local Plan Review and what the strategy for West Berkshire is going to be.”

Though the developer is not currently working with Colthrop Village Consortium, Mr Hopkins said: “We are still here and we still believe in this alternative strategy.

“We still believe that our site can come forward and deliver a number of units for an alternative scheme to north east Thatcham.

“We’ll have to wait and see what happens and reconsider our options.”

In response to objections the plans at Bowling Green Road faced, he said: “We believe that we have the solution to all of them so we don’t see them as an issue.

“We want to work with our local communities to deliver something that they actually want and I believe that we can do that.”