Scheme for homes and business hub in Burghclere expected

Plans are afoot for a 15-home development in Burghclere, complete with a new business hub.

Orchard Homes – a Southampton-based house builder – is in negotiations with Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council over the plans, and a planning application is expected later this year.

The site – which the company has bought from Highclere Estate – is in the southwest corner of the village, on land between Harts Lane and Winchester Road.

The greenfield site has been allocated for “a mix of residential, employment and blue/green infrastructure” in the parish’s neighbourhood plan, which was approved in May last year and guides the types of development that take place within Burghclere.

A planning application for around 15 houses is expected, comprising a mix of open market and affordable homes with an emphasis on two and three bed homes suitable for first time buyers or those looking to rent their first home.

The business hub meanwhile is expected to be a single storey ‘flexible workspace’.

The parish council is in favour of the plans, which also mean the village has been allocated no homes to build in the borough council’s Local Plan Update.

It does have concerns, however, over the style of the build, fearing the design isn’t sustainable enough, with future costs to make the development more energy efficient passed on to the residents.

In a meeting on Monday, parish councillor Richard Carrow said the parish council had been allocated a point of contact with Orchard Homes with whom they have briefings “and discuss the issues of the day”.

He said: “We’re just waiting for a formal planning application now.

“Our concern is that it’s a minimalist approach and we would like the development to be carbon zero and not need to retro fit.”

He warned it could be three times as expensive for the homeowner if they were required to retrofit sustainability initiatives such as open source heat pumps.