JM Architects and Southern Green are advising. Credit: via Boutique

Plans in for Benwell Dene

12 April 2023 14:01 Neil Tague Comments (0)

Build-to-rent provider Placefirst has submitted a full planning application for the 146-home development, two miles west of Newcastle city centre.

The project includes two, three and four-bedroom homes available for long term rent in a redevelopment of a 6-8-acre brownfield site, vacant for more than a decade.

Benwell Dene has been designed in partnership with JM Architects and Southern Green and features open space and an area dedicated to habitat creation. A terraced street pattern is intended to maximise views across the Tyne valley.

Other key members of the project team include civil and structural engineer Curtins, project manager and planner Identity Consult and MEP consultant TACE.

The scheme includes renewable technologies including photovoltaic panels and air source heat pumps. The neighbourhood will also accommodate electric vehicle charging and a resident car club. Thirty seven homes have been designed as Part M4(2) accessible and adaptable homes.

Placefirst’s portfolio of single-family rental homes in the North East includes The Green in Hartlepool, the 116-home new-build scheme Scholars View in Hetton-le-Hole and the bungalow-led The Oaks at Esh Winning in Durham, where work started in September 2022.

If approved, work is expected to start at Benwell Dene later this year.

James Litherland, head of planning at Placefirst, said: “Our plans for Benwell Dene seek to provide quality and choice in the single-family BTR sector which is currently underserved in Newcastle.

“We have designed a stand out neighbourhood which integrates sustainable features such as an innovative urban drainage network, communal open space and areas dedicated to resident well-being and habitat creation.

“We are excited about the opportunity to transform this prominent brownfield site in the heart of the West End into an exceptional neighbourhood of 146 new homes. It has been designed specifically for long term rent and residents would benefit from well-maintained, energy efficient homes, with a strong sense of community.”

Established in 2010, Placefirst works in both the new-build and refurbishment segments of the market. The organisation’s portfolio includes the successful Welsh Streets regeneration project in Liverpool, the sixth and final phase of which has secured consent this year.