Northstowe Vision A Strategic Action Framework DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION January 2013 version 1, 21st January 2013

Credits and Acknowledgements Introduction The Northstowe Strategic Action Framework will represent the agreed aims and ambitions of key participants in the process of creating the new town of Northstowe. It reflects the Vision evolved over the past few years. The Framework amalgamates this with ideas and opinions that were expressed at workshops in November and December 2012 with strategic decision makers and the Northstowe Parish Forum with input from the Northstowe Joint Development Control Committee (NJDCC). The next stage is to develop the projects or take forward the ambitions as part of the gradual evolution of Northstowe as a living and active community. This version is the first and a working draft. It is anticipated it will be amended following further discussion at NJDCC, the Parish Forum, and with workshop participants and working groups. Please contact the Northstowe Team with comments: C/o Elaine Sargent, Northstowe Resource Officer at: elaine.sargent@scambs.gov.uk or Telephone: 01954 712908 by 7th February 2013.

Contents ‘A Vision Revitalised’ ……………………………………………..…….… 1 What are the Challenges? ……………………………………….……… 2 Objectives ……………………………………………………………..…… 3 Community ………………………………………………………….….….. 5 Design ……………………………………………………..…………..…… 7 Economic Development ……………………………………...…………… 9 Housing ……………………………………………………….………….… 11 Energy and Sustainability ………………………………………………… 13 SUMMARY Key Strategic Actions ………………..……………………… 15

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‘A Vision Revitalised’ Northstowe, Cambridge is a unique and special, sustainable new town. It will be the largest new town in the UK for 50 years, the third largest market town in Cambridgeshire, at the top of the hierarchy of new settlements in South Cambridgeshire. Foremost amongst its exemplary attributes will be the high quality transport infrastructure with dedicated public transport system and its approach to resource efficiency. The aspirations for Northstowe to achieve excellence and exemplary status on a range of fronts from energy to design to community governance are essential to achieving the quality of life that sets Northstowe on a journey as a highly desirable place to be, and a special lifestyle to live. In 2011 the Joint Promoters of Northstowe, Gallagher Estates and the Homes and Communities Agency issued a succinct brochure describing “a new approach to delivering Northstowe which aspires to be the most sustainable new community in Cambridgeshire”. It described the economic changes since the scheme was developed in 2007 and set out a new Vision: “Northstowe will be an exemplar and vibrant 21st century town with

a strong local identity. It will combine the best historic characteristics of local settlements with provision for more

sustainable patterns of living and lifestyle choices. Northstowe will be built to high environmental standards"

In 2013 this Vision remains a strong and uniting force. However two years on and we need to work out how to realise the 25 year Vision through its buildings, spaces, communities, as an example of excellence in the creation of a sustainable settlement. The challenge of creating the new ‘Quality’ town of Northstowe shares issues with many large-scale developments. At Northstowe, this is multiplied by creating a new settlement in a location where there is little supporting infrastructure or utility network, and little obvious sense of an urban ‘place’. Northstowe has a range of stakeholders with their own areas of interest too – the local communities, Parish Forum, political leaders, the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), developers and builders, drainage boards, local authorities, public agencies and private business. This Strategic Framework outlines the challenges, proposes common objectives and suggest areas where we can work together strategically to deliver Northstowe

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What are the Challenges? � The sheer scale and logistics of the ambition to create a

sustainable town in its entirety including supporting infrastructure and maintain viability

� Significant land preparation and enabling works to provide drainage, utilities, ICT, ordnance clearance, archaeological assessment and access routes whilst permitting viable and realistic phasing of developments

� Transport –planning around the A14 improvements and ensuring accessibility and capacity are provided in a well-designed local scheme

� To ensure excellent public transport is provided including an enhanced Cambridgeshire Guided Busway(CGB) and the service of local bus routes

� Economic development - to ensure that Northstowe

evolves as an employment centre in its own right whilst serving and helping to promote the wider needs of the Cambridge sub-region

� Sustainability –to attain as far as is viable the aspirations for sustainability in the Northstowe Exemplar requirements and to develop implementation plans in relation to building fabric, housing sector, all public and commercial uses, energy, landscape and water strategy.

� Urban design – place making and place identity so that architecture and design of the public realm are of the highest quality to identify what will make Northstowe special and agree detail through design codes in consultation with the local community, stakeholders and design professions.

� Housing – to ensure that there is an early and impressive start to the building programme that gains and maintains momentum and sales and includes overall at least 35% affordable housing, all built to the highest possible energy efficiency standards and permitting a range of tenure and delivery mechanisms, including self-build.

� Viability – addressing viability issues including the role of the public sector, phasing, availability of finance etc.

� Education - bringing forward the primary and secondary schools and supporting them to provide specialist facilities and community access as far as is viable.

� Community Infrastructure – co-ordination of provision of services that together create a town including library, sports facilities, civic hub; health centre; community house, local centre, cycle, bridle and walking routes

� Community Development and Governance- how to work with existing communities, integrating residents in a cohesive body that takes on responsibility for local governance and management of community assets in perpetuity. including a mechanism to generate revenue

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Objectives One way to approach the individual challenges is to think of Northstowe as a programme of inter-related projects. This Strategic Framework is the starting point for turning the qualities and aspirations into agreed aims, objectives and practical projects. The range of issues and risks, the long delivery timescale and the variety of topic areas that need to converge to create a town mean that the planning and delivery of Northstowe have to be run as a co-ordinated programme. Prepared in consultation with key stakeholders, Members of the Northstowe Joint Development Control Committee (NJDCC) and Parish Forum representatives, the developers and HCA, the Framework sets out key and agreed actions under five working themes: o Community o Design o Economic Development o Housing o Energy and Sustainability

The original Vision and Strategic Framework for Northstowe reflect the Cambridgeshire Quality Charter for Growth which promotes the planned growth of sustainable and vibrant new communities in accordance with its four themes: Community > sustainable living > community spirit > lifelong learning > employment and business Climate > towards low carbon > green space > food production Connectivity > guided bus > connected streets > local facilities Character > local identity > water > play and recreation > public art

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The overall planning and delivery programme has the following principal objectives:

1. To maintain the Framework for the Plan based on the Cambridge Quality Charter which guides the work with its focus on climate change, connectivity, character and community.

2. To plan and design the town in accordance with agreed principles set out in the Development Framework Document endorsed

by the NJDCC on 20th July 2012

3. To plan and design the town in accordance with a set of Exemplar qualities to which all who are engaged in the delivery of the town

4. aspire and will work towards and which were endorsed by NJDCC on 4th October 2012

5. To work in partnership across the public, private and community sectors to bring forward the delivery of Northstowe in a timely and viable framework whilst ensuring that essential and desirable economic and community infrastructure elements are provided or facilitated as part of the agreed programme

6. To ensure that the local communities are informed, consulted and engaged in the planning and delivery of Northstowe as far as

possible

7. To ensure that the delivery of the town is co-ordinated in terms of the essential infrastructure and enabling works, the provision of employment and business uses, the development of residential areas including an average of 35% affordable housing, and the provision of essential landscape and community infrastructure, ensuring that community facilities and basic infrastructure are generally in place, whether on an interim or permanent basis in advance of the occupation of the dwellings.

8. To ensure that local governance and decision making is central to the planning and delivery of services and the physical

environment including the establishment of a local governance structure, at the earliest opportunity, deriving particularly from the Parish Forum and existing residents in Rampton Drift, Oakington, Willingham and Longstanton.

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Community ■ AIM: Northstowe will be a long term fully self-sustainable community that is vibrant, innovative and financially stable that bridges the gap in Cambridgeshire and provides disadvantaged young people with greater opportunities for housing, education and employment.

ACTIONS ►Engage with existing communities in and around Northstowe, on the process of house building and exploring how to ensure employment opportunities for local people. As the population grows, there would be opportunities for new people to participate in the Community Council, as well as enabling the new community at

Northstowe to have a real influence and opportunity to shape Northstowe as it develops ►Schools shall play a key role as community hubs providing early/interim facilities as new residents arrive in addition to alternative spaces for people to meet informally to begin to form their own social networks. The Primary School will be built as a whole school from the start accommodating first phase primary school and secondary school children. It will also have space for the Children’s Centre services, and the Child and Family Health team from Longstanton surgery. The Community, Arts and Sports workers would use the primary school as an early base. Community spaces would be hired out to local groups and people in the same way that a village hall/community centre would be hired out with bookings through the school office. The community development worker would be a regular visitor as would the community police and the County’s Locality Team until a more permanent space is available at the community building in the local centre or secondary school respectively. ► Agencies/partners to be encouraged to provide staff, venues, information and contacts to promote good community development through willingness, commitment and working together to achieve ‘the greater good’. ►Establish community governance at the earliest opportunity to encourage ownership, commitment and a sense of identity for Northstowe at the outset. Local people would rather see a community development trust model and either the Trust or a Parish Council could have assets invested in them to generate community investment funding e.g. a retail units provided by the

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developer to the Northstowe Council to help generate income. Income could be generated using the precept if there is resistance to the leasehold model generating ground rent. ►Scatter play areas as informal natural recreation spaces as well as more formal spaces in accordance with standards, urban design and community need ►Community Development Worker must be in place from day one, welcome packs should be delivered to new residents as they arrive. BPHA/CPL may fund a youth or community development worker. Learning from the Olympic Legacy recruit and train volunteers to support community development in the early phase of Northstowe. ►Create a community house, possibly shared with the Diocese of Ely which hopes to house a Minister on site from day one, and who might take on its management until a Community Trust or governance is established. The Diocese may fund a youth or community development worker. ►All members of the Northstowe Team should be based on site (e.g. using the Officers Mess along with the HCA or in a new flagship building in Phase 1 at the entrance to the site). There should be a ‘whole team’ approach regardless of employing ‘organisation’. The Team should include service providers such as Community Development Workers, Youth Workers with shared work plans and objectives ►Welcome ‘memory sticks’ could be used instead of welcome packs, and welcome packs should include how to make best use of energy efficient homes, as well as waste, recycling, foot and cycle paths and access to public transport

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Design

■ AIM: Northstowe will be a new 21st Century Cambridgeshire town adapted as an example of excellence for sustainable living, embracing modern exemplar technologies and construction methods. In this manner Northstowe will become a ‘pathfinder’ for new settlements in the 21st Century. ACTIONS

►Distinct character areas will be created with primary areas being the ‘high street’, the town centre, local centres and the outer perimeters of the town, green corridors, B1050. The Northstowe

town centre should be designed like the centre of a Cambridgeshire market town and with space for large civic gatherings and events. The green corridors spatially divide the town enabling character to be varied between differing subdivisions. The entrance to the town along the B1050 demands special attention. Northstowe should be designed and constructed as a fully mixed community that provides a varied mix of residential properties, commercial properties and retail properties. ►Establish strong landscape structure in early phases and incorporate art in the landscape at every opportunity to endow richness, using features such as roundabouts, local square, the Mushrooms, CGB route, water park, Airfield. Use the ‘natural’ environment for walking and heritage trails, linking to nearby villages and orientate using existing or created landmarks ►Good quality experienced architects for each development parcel and who are retained beyond the gaining of planning approval providing a watching brief to oversee the implementation by individual plot developers to ensure the design intent is delivered. The architecture should take visual clues from the existing vernacular in the area, utilising details such as pargetting, and should not use standard house types. Design codes should be clear and precise to ensure all development meets acceptable standards. ►The size of development parcels should be limited to a maximum of 100 residential units, in order to create variety. Where development parcels exceed 100 units different architects should design sub-areas, each not exceeding 100 units. The same approach should be taken to buildings within the town and local

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centres with the urban design giving the impression of a community that has evolved over time. ►All residential properties shall be designed to include good levels of usable internal and external space, together with high levels of storage. ►Existing buildings should be retained and brought into early temporary use where appropriate for activities such as arts workspace which could utilise buildings without the need for major refurbishment. Buildings or land in a suitable condition could be used for community or informal sports uses. ►Development plots within developed areas, irrespective of use, should be temporarily landscaped and managed and maintained in an attractive and tidy condition until development commences. This will prevent undeveloped plots becoming an eyesore and detracting from other nearby properties. ►Residential properties in the vicinity of the town and local centres, especially on the main routes, should be designed and constructed with high ground floor ceiling heights to allow the potential future establishment of small businesses within them and be granted planning permission that enables flexibility of use, in order to support the long term success of these centres. ►The dedicated Busway should be utilised as a temporary linear park until required for its full intended use to establish its function. ►The NAAP is provides clear guidance on the ease of movement and connectivity within Northstowe. However, public transport, cycle and pedestrian connections between Northstowe and the surrounding existing villages needs to be improved to enable the

existing services and facilities to be easily accessed by the residents of Northstowe, which will initially support those existing businesses and services, and later allow the new facilities in Northstowe to be accessed by the surrounding communities to increase their choice of services and facilities. This is important to assist the retention of existing facilities and services in the existing villages surrounding Northstowe. ► A cycle hire scheme should be established in Northstowe to link the CGB bus stops, the local centres and employment areas, in order to encourage cycling and help reduce the use of private motorcars. ►Adaptable designs for sustainability should be built into all residential and commercial buildings e.g. home zones and easy access for bikes onto the CGB, solar orientation in design to achieve sustainable energy usage, orchards and allotments, waste collection bins. The design and location of community buildings is key to successful co-location and making sure that building and spaces are flexible and adaptable helps to support long term financial viability. ►The retention of the skills, knowledge and expertise of the Design Quality Panel are to be retained throughout the development of the town. ►Established watching brief to oversee the implementation of quality design by individual plot developers and a clear sequence to ensure a balanced provision of residential properties, employment facilities, retail facilities and community facilities.

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Economic Development ■ AIM: Employment and retail shall help shape Northstowe as a community and add to its identity by meeting the needs of local people whilst serving a clear role in the regional economy. ACTIONS

► Review the Northstowe Economic Development Strategy to do more “D” (Development) expanding on the good “R” (Research) undertaken in the Cambridge area. Try to attract the firms that will move the research outcomes of others forward into ‘development’. These companies may wish to co-locate and provide a supply chain for the R&D sector - this could be Northstowe’s USP in the region

► Seek Inward Investment from established Cambridgeshire Hi-tech businesses to complement a broader Cambridge offer. Consider product development specialisms e.g. cleantech ► Encourage local businesses to move to Northstowe giving an early boost to the employment areas, reducing travel and providing opportunities for local entrepreneurs/businesses. Consider re-siting Stagecoach bus depot to take advantage of CGB and busway but first in-movers will set the general tone to attract ‘good quality’ tenants. ► Harness links to the City of Cambridge (e.g. legal, financial sectors) alongside more global positioning, as an added market attraction and local impetus to business development, capitalising on Northstowe’s locational advantages. How can the offer at Northstowe complement Alconbury? ► Consider early sequencing rather than phasing on developing business sites from Phase 1, to facilitate actual ED implementation. with timeline for the phasing/sequencing of commercial development including the construction of premises to let, different levels of servicing with full ICT networks ► A supply of ready-built premises for small businesses will accelerate development. Integrate flexibility into building types and tenures to encourage entrepreneurship. A high quality spec incubator unit would be useful ‘the Northstowe Business Centre ’. ► Promote a Flagship entrance building to help market Northstowe and provide local business space as well as staff /project team accommodation and information on the project.

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► Consider use of former MOD buildings for starter units with appeal to artisans and crafts people in the early years ► Need a mix of different kinds of employment – office, skilled manual and importantly part time employment etc to ensure a sustainable local economy, accommodating a range of residents from technicians at Addenbrokes to London commuters and people wanting to work from home. ► A variety of property types, sizes and tenures should be provided to ensure appropriate accommodation is available for all sectors of the business and retail community, from small start-up units to small scale manufacturing, to hi-tech R & D enterprises, corner shops, small and some larger units. ►Set up construction trades training facility on site to gain practical experience and link with post 16 education. Potential to re-use former MoD building and/or to set up branch of Cambridge Regional College, using CGB for primary access for trainees and construction workers. Priority to local labour and work experience – with apprenticeship schemes created through new Pathfinder Academy and CRC. House builders and contracts should be contracted to employ local labour and apprenticeship programmes (ground work, construction work, brick work, plumbing, etc). ► Seek investment by an appropriate anchor tenant at opposite ends of the town centre and at local centres and ensure local and town centres are complementary, especially in the early years when the local centre is established well before the town centre.

►Support the variety of general businesses, such as retail, food, hospitality that will grow ‘naturally’ with the population, with suitable, available commercial floor space and business support services. ► The town centre will be a source of employment with demand for ‘people services’ such as banks, solicitors, sandwich makers, printers etc. A good hotel would be useful. Early buildings should be designed and constructed to allow their temporary use as shops, mobile shops or markets until the main retail provision is provided - potential for temporary ‘pop up’ shops in the short term? Promote by employing town centre manager, and offer reduced business rates or explore the Enterprise Zone model. ► Need for a Marketing Strategy, agreed and owned by all partners, with a marketing approach to sell the vision for Northstowe. The joint promoters and all partners to establish a clear lead on the commercial promotion, and marketing of Northstowe as a place. Nested marketing strategy to target house builders, self-builders, developers, businesses, residents etc. Work with the universities including ARU, as potential business promotion partners. Recommend marketing Northstowe with the Cambridge tag: “Northstowe, Cambridge”. ► Recognise overlap with areas of Community, Energy and Housing (e.g. good mix of executive housing helps attract Inward Investment as well as affordable/key sector housing for lab technician staff, adding to the supply of labour and jobs) ► Should we create a public sector cluster that provides immediate catchment for local businesses. Can we attract a major public sector organisation e.g. HMRC or would this impede the image of entrepreneurship and deter more innovative and new companies?

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Housing ■ AIM: To make Northstowe an attractive place to live, offering a flexible range of high quality homes, which will meet the needs of a diverse and growing community.

ACTIONS ►Ensuring the affordable housing can be provided sufficiently early to take advantage of the HCA grant secured by BPHA (CPL). Affordable housing will include a mix of social rented, Affordable Rented and shared ownership homes.

►The District Council working with BPHA (CPL) to identify a pilot scheme of 20 – 30 homes in Phase 1 for the building of the first new Council houses at Northstowe. ►The District Council potentially working with BPHA(CPL) to establish an agency that can offer to take on the management of the Private Rental Sector at Northstowe ►The Council to explore the potential for a bespoke agency to build, own and manage a substantial portfolio of private rented properties. If this is established it could also take on the offer of PRS management services. ►Joint Social Housing management setting high standards of management for all housing association and council tenants at Northstowe. ►A portion of the market sale plots to be set aside for self-builders and potentially purchased and marketed by the Council. This could include provision for DIY self-builders, self-build co-ops or small local builders who may want to build a small number of units. ►The Council’s design guide to provide a steer for the main house builders. This will include guidance on car parking provision. The Council will also need to work with house builders to ensure that the right mix of property sizes is achieved to ensure a mixed community and future options to move to bigger or smaller properties within Northstowe as peoples’ circumstances change. ►Achieve high quality space standards, distinct character areas and quality architecture that achieves tenure blindness. The

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affordable housing will also build all homes to a Lifetime Homes standard and follow the principles of Build for Life. ►For all affordable homes to include a number of enhancements to the building fabric such as insulation and ventilation and the use of renewable technologies which can be incorporated in a ‘fabric first’ approach. This equates to enhanced Code Level 4 standard, to maximise the benefits to the tenants and leaseholders and achieve the best value for money for the investment required ►The housing needs of older people to be explicitly addressed. This could include options for a ‘retirement village’ which would bridge both market and affordable housing provision. Similarly an extra care scheme could also be cross tenure. ►To seek both private sector and housing association provision of specialist or supported housing. For example, current practice is to provide 2% of homes as fully wheelchair accessible. ►Housing provision will be monitored on an annual basis to assess emerging outcomes, and to address any issues etc. ►A variety of property types, sizes and tenures should be provided to ensure appropriate accommodation is available for all sectors and ages of the community, from unskilled labour to directors and from young people leaving home to those of retirement age. ►Residential properties should be designed in a manner that does not negatively distinguish between rented and owned properties, different economic groups, or different age groups, but rather seeks to integrate them all into one cohesive community.

►Residential properties should be designed and constructed to be flexible, in order to facilitate future changes in peoples’ lifestyles and their needs of the properties they live in. ►Provision should be made for 10% of the residential properties to be provided as individual dwellings or small scale developments, in groups of up to half a dozen. Plots for these developments should be distributed throughout the main residential areas and not clustered in one place. Provision should be made to cater for self-build schemes, both on an individual and group basis ► Potential purchasers should be offered a range of additional technologies that they could purchase for inclusion in the construction of residential properties and customise their house to their budget and wishes. They should be constructed in a manner that enables the easy fitting of additional technologies as people chose to fit them at a later date

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Energy and Sustainability ■ AIM: An exemplar of sustainable living with low carbon and greenhouse gas emissions able to accommodate the impacts of climate change. ACTIONS ►The inclusion of climate change adaptation measures as a clear commitment and integral part of the design coding for Phase 1 and subsequently carried through into building layout, designs, materials and finishes in reserved matters applications. ►A high profile, long-term promotion and engagement programme designed to ensure that all those living, working and visiting Northstowe are not only conscious of its identity as an exemplar ‘sustainable’ settlement but also very much a part of it. This would ensure that the baseline sustainable built infrastructure was used to secure maximum energy and natural resource savings, alongside demonstrating options for realising more sustainable living. ►A co-housing scheme tailored to the Northstowe identity to be included within Phase 1 of around 30 homes with members committed to living as a community. ►The inclusion and pilot of carefully designed and incorporated ‘home zones’ where road space is shared between users.

► Phase 1 should pilot beyond level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes and/or the use of Passivhaus Standards, and BREEAM Excellent/Outstanding as phases beyond 2016 will comply with the ‘zero-carbon’ Building Regulations. Revisit the specification of the school, costed based on BREEAM very good when tendered. ► Ensure sites of useful heat and cooling load (e.g. commercial areas, household recycling centre and potentially the secondary school subject to feasibility) are provided with mini-CHP infrastructure (biomass where possible) that is designed to allow connection to a full ring main, as brought forward in subsequent phases incorporating higher density residential areas. ►Appropriate location of at least one 330-500kW community owned wind turbine, with all FiT income split, in the first instance, between neighbouring parish councils to deliver local sustainability measures. Subject to feasibility smaller turbines located also to create iconic landmark feature e.g. avenue effect ►Water conservation and management measures that seek to achieve a target of 80 litres usage per day per household and/or Community water system for grey water onsite. ► Residential properties should be designed and constructed to be well insulated, orientated to optimise solar gain and therefore minimise heating costs and fuel poverty. Passive house standards should be the base level for all residential properties. ► A car club should be established in Northstowe, to assist in reducing individual motorcar ownership levels.

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SUMMARY Key Strategic Actions The draft Strategic Action Framework identifies the key elements that strategic thinkers, stakeholders and community representatives consider are the important ambitions that should be realised at Northstowe. Further work is needed to prioritise, to develop an implementation plan of projects, and to secure funding and viable delivery. Listed below are the proposed priority strategic actions that will help to define the delivery programme for Northstowe. Community

� Establish community governance at the earliest opportunity to encourage ownership, commitment and a sense of identity using a community development trust model

� Create a community house, possibly shared with the Diocese of Ely who might take on its management until a Community Trust or governance is established.

� Schools to play a key role as community hubs

Design � Distinct character areas will be created with primary areas

being the ‘high street’, the town centre, local centres and the outer perimeters of the town, green corridors, B1050 � Establish strong landscape structure in early phases and

incorporate art in the landscape � Limit the size of development parcels to a maximum of 100

residential units. Good quality experienced architects for

each development parcel should be retained to oversee the implementation by individual plot developers � Improve Public transport, cycle and pedestrian connections

between Northstowe and the surrounding existing villages to enable the existing services and facilities to be easily accessed by the residents of Northstowe, together with establishing a cycle hire scheme � Adaptable designs for sustainability should be built into all

residential and commercial buildings � The retention of the skills, knowledge and expertise of the

Design Quality Panel throughout the development

Economic Development � Review the Northstowe Economic Development Strategy to

do more Development expanding on the good Research undertaken in the Cambridge area; attract the firms that will move research outcomes of others into ‘development’ � Create a supply of ready-built flexible premises for small

businesses and a high quality incubator unit,’ the Northstowe Business Centre ’, possibly as a Flagship entrance building to help market Northstowe t � Set up construction trades training facility on site to gain

practical experience and link with post 16 education. � ► Since the town centre will be a source of employment

with demand for ‘people services’ support the variety of general businesses, such as retail, food, hospitality that will grow ‘naturally’ with the population, with suitable, available commercial floor space and business support services. Early buildings should be designed and constructed to allow

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temporary use as shops, markets, and ‘pop up’ shops in the short term � Investigate creating a public sector cluster that provides

immediate catchment for local businesses � Develop a Marketing Strategy, agreed and owned by all

partners, with a marketing approach to sell the vision for Northstowe. The joint promoters and all partners to establish a clear lead on the commercial promotion, and marketing of Northstowe as a place

Housing � The District Council with BPHA (CPL) to identify a pilot

scheme of 20-30 homes in Phase 1 for the building of the first Council houses and establish an agency to take on the management of the Private Rental Sector at Northstowe � Potential purchasers should be offered a range of additional

technologies to purchase with homes constructed in a manner that enables the easy fitting of additional technologies. All affordable homes to include a number of enhancements to the building fabric and use of renewable technologies which can be incorporated in a ‘fabric first’ approach and equates to enhanced Code Level 4 � A portion of the market sale plots to be set aside for self-

builders (DIY self-builders, self-build co-ops, small local builders), potentially purchased and marketed by the Council. � The housing needs of older people to be explicitly

addressed. This could include options for a ‘retirement village’ which would bridge both market and affordable housing provision.

� A variety of property types, sizes and tenures should be provided to ensure appropriate accommodation is available for all sectors and ages of the community, from unskilled labour to directors and from young people leaving home to those of retirement age

Energy and Sustainability � A high profile, long-term promotion and engagement

programme designed to ensure that all those living, working and visiting Northstowe are not only conscious of its identity as an exemplar ‘sustainable’ settlement but also feel they are very much a part of it.

� Appropriate location of at least one 330-500kW community owned wind turbine

� Ensure sites of useful heat and cooling load (e.g. commercial areas, household recycling centre and potentially the secondary school) are provided with mini-CHP infrastructure (biomass where possible) that is designed to allow connection to a full ring main

� Residential properties should be designed and constructed to be well insulated, orientated to optimise solar gain. Passive house standards should be the base level for all residential properties. Water conservation and management measures that seek to achieve a target of 80 litres usage per day per household and/or Community water system for grey water onsite

� A co-housing scheme tailored to the Northstowe identity to be included within Phase 1 of around 30 homes with members committed to living as a community