Farmland earmarked for 950 new homes as town continues to grow

Estate will have park to boost wildlife habitat

Developers have revealed plans for another new housing estate which will include hundreds of new homes, a school, shops, and medical facilities.

The 250-acre site at Court Lodge Farm near Kingsnorth would see Ashford’s urban sprawl continue to spread southwards over what is currently 15 fields of farmland.

It has been earmarked for 950 new homes in Ashford Borough Council’s Local Plan, and will be built to the south of Pound Lane and the Knights Park housing estate.

It follows the plan to build 6,000 new homes in the neighbouring hamlet of Chilmington Green, which will be Ashford’s largest ever housing development.

Landscape architects Urban Wilderness have submitted a scoping application for Court Lodge Farm on behalf of the developer Hallam Land Management.

The company’s report to the council states: “The outline application on the northern portion of the site will comprise up to 950 dwellings, a healthcare facility, a school and a range of local retail opportunities.”

The new housing estate would also contain “open space within all parts of the development” and will also see the creation of a new bio-diversity park named the Discovery Park, complete with lakes, grasslands, wetlands and woodlands.

The park will boost wildlife habitats and could be used for recreation and children’s education, while at the same time providing flood protection.

The company’s report suggests the new development will be built in phases and will one day provide homes for as many as 2,200 new residents.

They estimate building up to 70 houses per year, leading to jobs for 75 construction workers on site, and 10 lorry trips coming onto the site every day.

The homes will go some way towards providing the 12,000 the council has identified in its Local Plan up to 2030.

Developers will need to take into account Ashford’s housing, education, economic and transport needs, with major road upgrades planned at the A28, A2070 and the new junction 10a at the M20.

To find out more about the development visit planning.ashford.gov.uk and search for reference 16/00005/EIA/AS.

What do you think? Write to Kentish Express, 34-36 North Street, Ashford, TN24 8JR or email kentishexpress@thekmgroup.co.uk

Fields surrounding Court Lodge Farm to the south of Pound Lane have been earmarked for new housing, a school, shops and medical facilities

Homes will go some way to Local Plan’s 12,000 target