Proposal for 500 homes next to Vodafone HQ

Under the proposals, drawn up by developers Commercial Estates Group, approximately 87 acres of land near Shaw-cum-Donnington have been earmarked for development.
The houses would straddle both sides of the A339 on land owned by Genevieve Mather to the north and west of Vodafone’s UK headquarters.
After one of the most contentious planning battles the town has seen in recent years, the communication giant gained approval for plans to build its HQ on green land outside of the settlement boundary in April 1999.
The plan’s approval led to concerns over in-filling between the town and the M4.
And more recently, a similar scheme to build 2,000 homes in the area had been considered within West Berkshire Council’s core strategy as an alternative to the Sandleford development but was ultimately unsuccessful.
Speaking at a meeting of Newbury Town Council’s planning and highways committee on Monday, development manager for CEG, Matthew Tunley said that the development was “on a much smaller scale than originally proposed and would now be treated as a non-strategic site.”
He said that there were no detailed plans for the site at this stage but no more than 500 homes would be built in the first phase although the site had capacity for more.
Representatives were questioned on access to the site with Phil Barnett (Lib Dem, Clay Hill) asking if alterations would be made to the A339.
Director of residential development at Turley Associates, Peter Stacey, said that both sites would be accessed from the existing Vodafone roundabout.
Mr Stacey said that considerations were in order for a hotel, pub or restaurant and these would also be accessed from the Vodafone roundabout.
“At this moment in time we have no plans for shops but there was a suggestion for a doctors surgery from Donnington Parish Council,” Mr Stacey said.
Speaking to the

, the director of PR company Curtin and Co, Ally Kennedy, said that the site did not fall within the current settlement boundary but was being considered under West Berkshire Council’s site allocation plan.
“We are looking at 450-500 homes in the first phase of development but we estimate the site could accommodate 700. We are consulting with local organisations as to what it could accommodate,” he said.
When asked whether there was a need for a hotel on the site, as the Donnington Valley Hotel is situated a mile up the road, Mr Kennedy said there was a shortage of hotel accommodation, according to local businesses.
With regards to education, agents said that there were currently no plans to provide a new school.
Joan Day (Lid Dem, Northcroft) said: “Which schools will will the residents' children go to? They all look pretty full to me.”
Mr Stacey replied that the issue was being looked at by the district council.
A draft master plan is expected to be displayed in November with a planning application expected to be submitted to West Berkshire Council next year.