Countryside 100% affordable housing development in Coventry given the green light

Coventry City Council has given Countryside Partnerships and Solihull-based social housing provider Platform Housing Group planning permission to build up to 196 affordable homes.

The development at Sphinx Drive will provide 23 homes for social rent, 36 for affordable rent and 137 for shared ownership.

The site for development is located 200m from the Sowe Valley green corridor and a local wildlife site, and was formerly occupied by a golf course.

An outline planning application was first reviewed by Coventry City Council in October 2021, but the planning committee deferred the decision due to several concerns regarding ecology, biodiversity, trees, air quality, density, access to the site, and the impact on traffic.

The council stated that the proposals would lead to significant biodiversity and habitat loss and impact on protected species, however no objections were raised subject to the details of suitable mitigation being agreed.

After the council failed to make a decision within the allocated timeframe, an appeal was made to he Planning Inspectorate, which granted the scheme planning permission in December 2022.

The scheme to develop 196 affordable homes was considered at Coventry City Council’s planning committee on 14 December, and was granted planning permission.

Earthworks are underway on the site and construction work is due to start in the coming weeks.

>> See also: Countryside to build 550 homes in Coventry suburb

>> See also: Countryside acquires Homes England land for 265 homes in Derbyshire 

Countryside Partnerships will also invest over £1.5 million in local services, including education, healthcare, highways and the offsetting biodiversity scheme.

The project team consists of Lichfields planning consultants, Zebra Architects, transport planners PJA and Wardell Armstrong as environmental consultants.

Adam Sharpe, managing director at Countryside Partnerships, South West Midlands, said: “We’re delighted to have secured planning permission for Sphinx Drive and to be working with Platform Housing here in Coventry.

”Both organisations are committed to providing high-quality, affordable homes, and our work at Sphinx Drive builds on our projects already underway in other parts of the Midlands. Together we will transform this site into a fantastic place to live and provide real opportunities for people living in the area to own a new, affordable home and become part of a vibrant new community.”