Neighbourhoods in Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham and Cambridge will be transformed with homes, green spaces, shops and hotels as the Transport Secretary, Heidi Alexander, unlocks brownfield sites across the country for development.
The government has unveiled the new development company, Platform4, to kickstart the delivery of up to 40,000 new homes over the coming decade, with 15,000+ in the next 5 years, by transforming surplus railway land into thriving communities.
Heidi Alexander, Transport Secretary, said: “Our railways are more than just connections between places – they create economic opportunity and drive regeneration.
“It’s exciting to picture the thousands of families who will live in these future homes, the vibrant neighbourhoods springing up and the new businesses that will launch thanks to these developments.
“Platform4 will breathe new life into these spaces, delivering tens of thousands of new homes as part of our Plan for Change promise to build 1.5 million homes, while reviving communities around rail stations, supporting jobs and driving economic growth.”
Platform4 will bring London and Continental Railways Ltd and Network Rail’s Property Team under one umbrella enabling their skills and capabilities to function in a unified structure to deliver the homes.
The move will breathe life into forgotten corners of Britain’s railway land, from disused goods yards to vacant industrial sites, kickstarting £1 billion worth of new developments across the country.
Bek Seeley, Chair of Platform4, said: “Platform4 will deliver on key government priorities, creating new homes and jobs and stimulating economic growth. Working alongside our partners and local authorities, we will create sustainable places that bring communities and customers together and leave a positive legacy for future generations.”
Neighbourhoods in cities around the UK will be transformed with homes, green spaces, shops and hotels – creating thousands of jobs.
Four sites have already been earmarked for development and include Newcastle Forth Goods Yards, Manchester Mayfield, Cambridge and Nottingham, which together will see over 2,700 new homes delivered and brownfield land transformed into vibrant neighbourhoods:
- Newcastle Forth Goods Yard: opportunity for up to 600 new homes and unlocking additional new homes
- Manchester Mayfield: opportunity for 1,500 new homes
- Cambridge: a mixed-use development with 425 homes
- Nottingham: 200 new homes following 348 successfully delivered homes at The Barnum
Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, Angela Rayner, said: “We are facing a housing crisis which has led to a generation being locked out of homeownership, all while land sits empty and disused across the country.
“We said we’d do everything possible to get Britain building, and that’s why today we’re setting out how we’ll get more homes built across surplus railway network sites in line with our brownfield-first approach and our Plan for Change target of delivering 1.5 million homes.”
Profits generated from the property company will be reinvested into Britain’s railways.
The National Federation of Builders (NFB) has welcomed the plans, but has cautioned that some of the schemes announced were already in the pipeline and have had planning permission in place for some time.
Rico Wojtulewicz, Head of Policy and Market Insight at the NFB, said: “Viability and ambition will be key to these projects succeeding. Some sites already have planning permission dating back decades and so Platform4 needs to reassess whether they need updating to deliver more for today’s communities.
“We would urge the Government to explore community density, where projects are large in scale because they deliver all a community wants and needs. This means more employment space and leisure facilities, greater levels of public services and space, and homes which suit individuals, families and older people. Doing so ensures that the local and regional rail lines with the ambition is based around are being used to their full potential.”
