Bringing more than homes to Church Crookham

This long-awaited development planned for release a few years ago but held up in the planning cycle is now set to launch in the late summer of this year, with the first completions scheduled for spring 2022.

What impressed me most, apart from the obvious and much-needed supply of quality new homes for both the private and affordable homes sector, is some very impressive financial contributions being made by Martin Grant Homes to the local community in the form of S106 contributions as well as on site provision for facilities.

For those of you unfamiliar with this, an S106 agreement is a legal agreement entered into by a developer with a local authority as part of the negotiations to secure planning consent.

At Albany Park, benefits to the local authority total nearly £5 million and will be reinvested into the local community. More than half of this amount will enter the education budget, with the remaining funds supporting local infrastructure which ranges from transport, leisure, and open space. Martin Grant will be providing a large
SANG (Suitable Alternative Green Space) offering approximately 82 acres of woodland which is located adjacent to the development. 

This fantastic area will consist of walking paths, boardwalks, new planting, and ecology features. Martin Grant will also be providing a new sports pavilion with 5 sports pitches, and a new public car park; allocated land for a medical centre as well as a convenience store. All these facilities will be a wonderful benefit to all of the residents in this well-planned development, located on the edge of the Fleet and Church Crookham urban area.

Too often development is seen in a negative light, and I think that this particular scheme addresses the ongoing shortage of new homes being built but also demonstrates how the side benefit of these contributions can help not only new but existing residents of the area.

Martin Grant Homes is no stranger to this area. Founded in 1978, and still, a privately owned, family-run business, they were the original developers of the adjoining Zebon Copse estate, a name very familiar and popular with residents. They have also developed in Fleet, Cove, Farnborough as well as across the South East, Midlands, and the Channel Islands.

There is a wide range of housing that will be on offer, from two to five bedrooms, so do please register your interest with our Fleet branch who will be able to keep you informed of the progress ahead of an official site launch.