Plans for 120 homes on edge of Chippenham approved

Taylow Wimpey plans to build 120 homes on the southern edge of Chippenham

Plans for 120 homes on the edge of Chippenham have been approved by Wiltshire Council.

Developer Taylor Wimpey plans to build the homes on the former Showell Nurseries, located near the 1,000 home Rowden Park development.

Outline permission was granted for the scheme back in 2020, but the details later submitted to the council revealed an increase in the scale of the homes.

The developer said this increase is due to its new house type range, "designed to be net zero carbon ready and compliant with future homes standards".

Energy-efficient solutions

Enhancements on the proposed properties include solar panels, air source heat pumps, underfloor heating and triple glazing.

Energy-efficient solutions of this type require wider external wall cavities and an increase in scale from two-storey to 2.5-storey homes.

There had been some concern from Wiltshire Council's urban designer that this would reduce the size of certain gardens to below the "reasonable minimum area".

However, the case officer reported that "the density of dwellings per hectare does not increase beyond the approved scheme".

It also states that the chosen materials are "appropriate for a new residential estate" and follow the theme seen in the adjoining phases of the Rowden Park development.

With this reserved matters application approved, the homes have moved a step closer to construction.