Harworth Estates has completed its first residential land sale at the 77-acre Prince of Wales development in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, to Ben Bailey Homes.
The transaction of the 11 acre parcel of land will enable Ben Bailey Homes to build 131 three and four-bedroom homes on the site of the pit yard at the former Prince of Wales Colliery. Construction of the first homes is expected to begin in January, which should allow the first residents to move in by the Autumn of this year.
The development was granted outline planning consent in December 2013 for 917 homes and 265,000 sq ft of employment space, as well as a range of community facilities, including retail units, cafes and medical & community centres. Completion of the entire development is expected to take between eight and 10 years.
The land sale to Ben Bailey Homes follows a significant amount of work undertaken by Harworth in 2013 and 2014 to prepare the 77-acre site for development, including the removal of all colliery buildings and mining infrastructure and the installation of new highways and drainage infrastructure.
The site’s development also includes the former spoil heap, next to the pit yard, which will be transformed into a country park, providing new public open space for the community. The country park will combine with Pontefract Park and Pontefract Racecourse to provide an extremely attractive gateway into Pontefract.
The development forms an important part of Wakefield Council’s wider regeneration plans for Pontefract. The site provides the road corridor for the proposed Northern Link Road, which will provide a gateway into Pontefract from the M62 and open up further space for residential and commercial development, a critical piece of infrastructure to ensure the future sustained growth of the area. The road corridor is expected to be completed in February 2015.
Chris Davidson, Development Manager for Harworth Estates, said: “This is an important first transaction in the regeneration of the former colliery, demonstrating our ability to create homes on brownfield land. Ben Bailey Homes is a high-quality housebuilder, with whom we have built up a strong relationship.”
Ben Bailey Homes’ managing director, Mark Mitchell said: “The purchase of land at the former Prince of Wales colliery represents a significant investment for Ben Bailey Homes. This £28m development of 131 new homes will be the very first for us in Pontefract and forms part of the businesses ongoing strategy for a major roll out of new developments across Yorkshire in 2015.
“We have undertaken extensive market research and studied home living trends to develop the selection of properties we will be building in Pontefract, raising the standard of the new build home sector.
“Works will commence later this month with the first homes ready for occupation in later in the summer.”
Peter Box, Leader of Wakefield Council, added: “The scheme will make a huge difference not just to Pontefract but the entire Wakefield district. It will bring significant inward investment to the area with the creation of new homes, new facilities and new opportunities for the residents of Pontefract. The site also forms an important part of the new Northern link road which will improve connectivity between Pontefract and the rest of the region.
“Although times are tough we are still achieving a lot and by working with Harworth Estates and other partners on ambitious projects such as these, we can continue to encourage economic growth across the district”.
This transaction reaffirms Harworth’s regeneration credentials and follows on from a strong 2014 in residential development. Harworth secured planning consent for a total of 1395 housing plots in the year and also completed sales that will enable housebuilders to build over 800 new homes in Yorkshire and the Midlands.