Home | Latest News | About the Proposals | Gallery | FAQs | Have your say | About us | Contacts
  Latest News < back to
 

Monday 14 June 2004
Major regeneration boost at priors hall
Sustainable growth planned for Corby

Plans for a sustainable expansion of Corby at Priors Hall have been submitted to Corby Borough Council and East Northamptonshire Council. The proposals, drawn up by Corby Developments Limited, are a major boost for Corby’s regeneration strategy being driven by Catalyst Corby. The proposals include:

  • Up to 5,100 high quality homes arranged around three distinct neighbourhoods providing for a wide range of choices and needs.
  • Around 3,000 new jobs including a new hotel and new business opportunities close to the Rockingham Speedway and the North Weldon Industrial Estate.
  • A comprehensive range of public services including health facilities and primary and secondary schools. Priors Hall will be the location for the new Corby Academy to be designed by Norman Foster & Partners.
  • A wide range of leisure and community facilities and local shops to serve the new residents.
  • Over 200 hectares of new parkland as the setting for new neighbourhoods, the equivalent of about 230 full size football pitches. In total, 50% of the site will be retained as green open space and woodland.
  • A comprehensive network of cycle and pedestrian facilities within the new community and new bus services linking the community to the surrounding areas such as Corby town centre.

The Priors Hall site covers nearly 400 hectares (950 acres) in total, with about two thirds (258 hectares) in the administrative area of Corby and the remaining third (127 hectares) within East Northamptonshire. The vast majority of the homes (over 4,350) will be within the Corby part of the site.

The development of Priors Hall is a key element of Corby’s wider regeneration plans. The site is identified for development in Catalyst Corby’s Regeneration Framework and the proposals are in line with the Government’s “Sustainable Communities Plan” to build more homes in Northamptonshire.

Alfred Buller, from Corby Developments Limited, said:

“We are delighted to be able to submit these proposals, which have been drawn up following discussions with a wide range of local organisations, and they demonstrate our confidence in the economic future of Corby.

“We believe this is a wonderful opportunity to bring quality new homes and jobs to Corby, and to continue the regeneration of the town. It will also create new parkland on the edge of the town for the residents of Corby and its surrounding neighbourhoods to enjoy.

“Our vision for the Priors Hall site is to create neighbourhoods in and around the new parkland, with a whole range of social and cultural activities integral to them. We do not want to create a dormitory suburb, but a unique and vibrant place in its own right.”

Commenting on the proposals, Councillor Willie Smith, Leader of Corby Borough Council said:

"This is a huge statement of confidence in the future of Corby. It would make a massive contribution to our growth aspirations, but obviously the Council will need to carefully study the details of the application in consultation with local people."

Local MP, Phil Hope, added:

"I very much welcome the proposals put forward at Priors Hall as the kind of high quality, sustainable development I would like to see in Corby. The application now needs to go through the proper planning procedures which will happen over the next few months, and I would encourage local residents to make their views known during the consultation."

Bob Lane, Chief Executive of Catalyst Corby, commented:

"This is great news and represents a significant step forward in the regeneration and growth of Corby. Our residential strategy identified this land as suitable for high quality development and we are delighted to see such a major demonstration of confidence in the future of the area.

“The population expansion which will transform Corby requires exciting new housing proposals such as Priors Hall. We urge everyone to examine the plans for themselves to see the outstanding benefits of this project in terms of creating new jobs, new schools and a whole new community in the Borough."

The proposals have been drawn up following discussions with a number of local bodies. A major consultation programme, including a series of exhibitions in Corby Town Centre, Weldon and Deene, will be announced in the next couple of weeks.
   
  © 2004 Corby Developments Ltd