We are working as part of a collaborative team on the design of a new Garden Community for Latimer (Clarion Housing), the UK’s largest housing association.

The Tendring and Colchester Borders Garden Community is expected to deliver thousands of new homes over the next 20 years as well as employment space, anew country park, an expansion of the University of Essex campus, a rapid transport system as well as shops, leisure and community facilities. Alongside Haworth Tompkins, Bell Phillips and Periscope, we are working on the detailed component of a hybrid planning application for the first phase of the new garden community, which will see 800 homes, retail and employment spaces and strategic green infrastructure.

The design of the wider masterplan and Phase 1 is underpinned by a landscape led approach, whereby the existing hedgerow corridors of ecological importance split the site into development parcels. These are retained and enhanced to provide active travel corridor across the site. We have been developing a mews typology within the higher density areas of the site, which features an inner terrace of walk-up apartments over garages fronting a vehicular street to the centre of the block. This accommodates parking and servicing, enabling the outer edges of the blocks to be car free, fronting green corridors and home streets, enabling the landscape to take centre stage across the masterplan.

The project is to be submitted for planning in Summer 2025.

Masterplan drawings courtesy of Haworth Tompkins.

‍