The challenge presented by one of the largest regeneration sites in the South of England was to create a place of real character at an appropriate scale within a vast, 500 hectare, windswept chalk quarry.
With an outline masterplan serving as the foundation for further detailed work, our team (three architecture practices and over 20 specialist consultants) was selected to deliver the development framework for the first phase of Castle Hill, comprising over 1,200 new homes, a school and associated commercial and community facilities.
In addition to this, we were commissioned to develop a range of contemporary housing typologies along with a design code to inform future development across the valley.
The idea that each neighbourhood should derive its identity from the specificity of its location (orientation, topography, aspect, access, adjacency) was of central importance. The form and arrangement of each site would then contribute to an overall development rooted in its local landscape and unlike any other development in the country.
The masterplan incorporated ambitious ecological design measures with the aim of establishing a benchmark for future large scale developments in the UK.