Vistry Group, Britain’s biggest housebuilder, has secured detailed planning consent to build 320 new homes in Windsor.
The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead issued planning permission on 13th November 2024 allowing the housebuilder to build the new homes on land off Dedworth Road, following approval from the council’s Windsor and Ascot Development Management Committee in October.
The 38-acre development, which will be called Windsor Arch, will feature a mix of one and two-bedroom apartments and two, three, four and five-bedroom houses, alongside a community building and 11 acres of open space. A further 5.4 acres of land will be provided for a special educational needs school, which will be the subject of a separate reserved matters application.
All the homes will benefit from low-carbon space and water heating, with air source heat pumps, solar PV panels and wastewater heat recovery systems. At least 128 will be affordable properties available for local people through low-cost rent or shared ownership, while 10 plots will have customisable layouts. The private homes will be built under Vistry’s Bovis Homes brand.
Trevor Wicks, managing director for Vistry Thames Valley, said:
“Securing detailed planning permission for this site unlocks the delivery of 320 new homes for the Windsor area on land which has been allocated for residential use within the Borough Local Plan and lies in a sustainable location just two miles from Windsor town centre.
“At least 40 per cent of the homes built here will be provided as high-quality new affordable housing, to deliver real social impact.
“The use of low-carbon technologies to heat and power the homes is testament to our commitment to help the industry move towards net zero, as well as helping customers minimise their carbon emissions, while the biodiversity net gain delivered at the site will significantly exceed the required 10 per cent, with the landscape design providing an 11 per cent boost to bio-diversity and a 44 per cent increase in hedgerows.
“The construction programme here is expected to span the next five years, creating new jobs on site and within the local supply chain. We are planning to start work in early 2025 with the first homes being due for completion in early 2026.”
Outline plans for up to 320 homes, a special educational needs school, a community building and open space, with access off Dedworth Road, were approved by the local authority in June 2023.
With planning permission now in place, work is due to begin on the site in January 2025 and the first homes are set to be released for sale in late 2025.
Vistry Thames Valley is a region of Vistry Group which incorporates the Bovis Homes, Linden Homes and Countryside Homes brands. For more information, visit vistrygroup.co.uk.