Emily Grapes, senior planner, Carter Jonas
City regeneration in motion
On the East Prop Awards in June, the East Barnwell regeneration challenge in Cambridge was named Future Challenge of the 12 months. For Carter Jonas’ Cambridge workforce, who’ve labored on the scheme since 2019, the popularity is greater than an accolade – it’s a well timed demonstration of how thought-about city regeneration can ship social, financial and environmental worth.
A counterpoint to Inexperienced Belt dependence
The award arrives at a big second in nationwide planning discourse. Media consideration has more and more targeted on growth within the Inexperienced Belt, and the ‘Gray Belt’ is commonly framed as the first path to assembly the federal government’s 1.5 million properties goal.
However the consideration given to the Gray Belt dangers overlooking the necessary function of inner-city regeneration. Carter Jonas analysis carried out final yr recognized some important challenges to constructing on the Inexperienced Belt, not least entry, landownership, and the truth that 21% of Inexperienced Belt land nationally is roofed by further environmental designations. In Cambridge, the provision of Gray Belt developable land is very restricted and fragmented.
With town’s inhabitants of 150,000 forecast to probably double by 2050, regeneration of underused city areas turns into not simply fascinating however mandatory.
A protracted-awaited transformation
East Barnwell, in Cambridge’s Abbey Ward, has lengthy been recognized as an space in want of funding. “It’s essentially the most disadvantaged ward within the metropolis,” explains Emily. “And regardless of being earmarked for regeneration for the reason that 2006 Native Plan, significant change hadn’t occurred till now.”
Carter Jonas was appointed by Cambridge Metropolis Council to ship a regeneration framework for East Barnwell, which was accomplished in 2019.
The neighbourhood, characterised by low-density suburban housing and poor connectivity, can be house to Cambridge United’s stadium, Coldham’s Widespread and Abbey Leisure Centre.
Demographically, East Barnwell contrasts sharply with the remainder of Cambridge. Solely 41% of properties are owner-occupied, with 28% council-owned and let. Foodbank use is the second highest within the metropolis and simply 54% of residents are in full-time employment.
Working with the Council, Carter Jonas formed a framework with three core goals: enhance housing provision, improve neighborhood and leisure services, and enhance connectivity – notably by prioritising energetic journey and open area.
Designing for density
In June 2024, planning permission was granted unanimously for the redevelopment of two websites on both aspect of Barnwell Street. The £50m scheme replaces ageing outlets, flats and underused inexperienced areas with 120 reasonably priced council properties, a brand new neighborhood centre, library, pre-school, café and industrial premises, a landscaped central sq. and park and 92 new bushes.
“This can be a main uplift in density,” says Emily. “The variety of properties on the consented websites throughout the masterplan has elevated from 18 to 120, all of that are reasonably priced housing. The homes are available a spread of sizes and embrace 4 designed for residents with disabilities. 90% are twin side and they’re gas-free, with air supply warmth pumps, MVHR air flow, inexperienced roofs and photo voltaic panels. The scheme additionally achieves 20% biodiversity web achieve – double the proportion required in nationwide coverage.
“The present buildings are two-storey, have a poor relationship with the road and are surrounded by low high quality inexperienced area and parking. The brand new buildings, in distinction, are as much as six storeys excessive, and have all of the attributes of an area centre, additionally creating a visible landmark within the surrounding space.”
Public realm and social infrastructure
Crucially, the scheme reorganises underused open areas right into a central, extra enticing and useful park – changing low-quality peripheral greenspace with a coherent, secure and related panorama. “Because of the elevated density of housing, we needed to work tougher with much less area,” says John. “However what we’ve supplied is way more usable and alluring.”
The redevelopment additionally addresses a much less seen problem: social infrastructure. “Abbey Ward is the one ward in Cambridge with no pub,” says Emily. “The neighborhood centre will assist fill that hole – offering a spot for social interplay, which is a necessity in community-building.
“The brand new neighborhood centre is intentionally multi-functional, which ties right into a council coverage to rationalise provision into bigger, extra versatile services.”
Supply by partnership
The scheme has been introduced ahead by Cambridge Funding Partnership (CIP), a collaboration between Cambridge Metropolis Council and The Hill Group. It’s certainly one of quite a few profitable tasks that Carter Jonas has delivered as planning advisor for CIP.
“This partnership mannequin works as a result of it blends private and non-private sector strengths,” says John. “The Council is aware of its tenants and communities, Hill brings growth supply and Carter Jonas supplies the technical and planning experience.”
Notably, CIP’s tasks, together with East Barnwell, have constantly achieved planning consent first time. That is partly as a result of emphasis on engagement. Session on East Barnwell started in 2019 and was appreciable, utilising workshops, drop-ins, native enterprise conferences and wider stakeholder communications. The planning utility took on board suggestions about interim industrial preparations and the influence on open area, with detailed methods secured by situation.
Constructed-in sustainability
East Barnwell is notable not just for its social infrastructure and housing supply however for the embedded sustainability of the scheme. Along with energy-efficient properties, the event promotes energetic journey with new cycle routes, decreased parking provision and well-designed pedestrian crossings.
“The inner structure actually prioritises strolling and biking,” says John. “It helps the imaginative and prescient of a 15-minute metropolis – the place residents can attain native services inside a brief distance. There’s a rising recognition that 15-minute cities cut back automotive dependency, enhance well being outcomes and create stronger communities, and this scheme is a good instance of these ideas in motion.”
Classes in densification
Densification is a key theme in East Barnwell, responding to current adjustments in planning coverage. Paragraph 125 of the revised NPPF states that native authorities ought to optimise using land and embrace minimal density requirements for areas well-served by public transport. It states that planning authorities are anticipated to pursue ‘important uplifts in density,’ notably on the town and metropolis centres, and to show that they’ve totally thought-about these choices earlier than proposing adjustments to Inexperienced Belt boundaries. On this context, East Barnwell turns into a textbook instance of the way to make higher use of underutilised land throughout the city material.
“To some – together with some members of the earlier authorities – there’s a preconceived view that densification and good placemaking are incompatible,” says John. “East Barnwell proves in any other case. By planning effectively, you possibly can enhance housing numbers, enhance design, and meet sustainability targets all of sudden. By infill, repurposing low-value area and reconfiguring outdated websites, densification helps sustainable development whereas preserving the environmental and strategic objective of Inexperienced Belt land.
“Densification additionally improves the industrial viability of schemes. Extra properties imply extra footfall for native companies and extra help for neighborhood services. That, in flip, improves the long-term success of a regeneration challenge.
“And there may be scope for elevated density in Cambridge, which is seemingly simply 15 dwellings per hectare (dph), in comparison with 55 dph in Camden and 75 in Islington.”
Planning forward for future challenges
The scheme can be forward-looking. Latest figures present that metropolis main colleges all through the nation are susceptible to closure, largely because of an city exodus linked to housing prices – and this dangers being a think about Cambridge.
Inexpensive household housing in metropolis centres has turn out to be essential to stabilise pupil numbers, in addition to to retain key employees and the workers essential to help future financial development. By making a big funding in reasonably priced housing in East Barnwell, Cambridge is mitigating a future drawback and getting ready for its future enlargement.
Conclusion: regeneration completed proper
East Barnwell supplies a mandatory steadiness to any assumption that housing targets could be met primarily by Inexperienced Belt launch. The rising scheme exhibits that, with the proper partnerships, technical experience and political will, city regeneration can ship reasonably priced, sustainable housing in a method that restores present communities.
Regeneration, and densification particularly, if completed effectively, is an important a part of the answer to Britain’s housing disaster. East Barnwell not solely meets right this moment’s wants however anticipates tomorrow’s. That’s what makes it worthy of recognition.
