The Scotswood Masterplan has been prepared to ensure the successful promotion and regeneration of Scotswood and to act as a key driver for housing market renewal in the west end of Newcastle. The aim of the Scotswood Masterplan is to develop an exemplar, sustainable development that challenges the way in which mainstream family housing is designed and delivered. The overarching theme is the ‘Renaissance of the Urban Neighbourhood’. This will include high quality family homes, an attractive neighbourhood park and quality public realm, high levels of environmental sustainability, local services and shops and improved access and transport. The Council has acquired and cleared the majority of a 60 hectare residential site and secured outline planning permission for the Masterplan development.
One of the central elements of the project is to hold an Exposition demonstrating the project as an exemplar new neighbourhood. The Expo Festival is scheduled to be held in 2011 during the first phase of development. Overall the Scotswood Masterplan will deliver:
- up to 1,800 new homes of mixed type and tenure, with a focus on family housing
- development of a new neighbourhood centre with retail (2,230sqm), commercial (3,000sqm) and community facilities
- an enhanced neighbourhood park and high quality civic spaces and public realm; and
- exemplary design with high levels of environmental sustainability (CfSH Level 4-6).
The Council, working with its public sector partners Bridging NewcastleGateshead and English Partnerships, is seeking to establish a long term partnership vehicle with a private sector partner to deliver this comprehensive, housing-led regeneration development. The partner will be required to provide innovation in terms of both design and delivery, together with development expertise and funding, to take forward development activity in accordance with the Scotswood Masterplan.
It is envisaged that a joint venture partnership vehicle, to be known as the Scotswood Urban Regeneration Vehicle (URV), will be established for a term envisaged to be at least 15 years. The public sector and the successful private sector partner (PSP) will each hold a 50% interest in the URV.
It is considered that the project, through the establishment of an asset backed vehicle, meets many of the Government’s policy objectives, not least those set out in the recent Housing Green Paper and specifically the proposals for Local Housing Companies:
Advocates local authorities and the private sector developing a more direct role in housing delivery and local partnership delivery vehicles;
Promotes efficient use of local authority land assets, public sector funding & resources through investment rather than gap funding/grant aid;
Establishes strategic partnership and collaborative working with the private sector to harness the skills of both;
Draws in private sector investment to deliver early infrastructure;
Introduces a new shared risk and reward model, where the PSP has an interest in ensuring delivery and quality in agreement with the Public Sector in order to achieve its returns;
Takes a strategic and long term approach to comprehensive regeneration and delivery of quality housing and sustainable neighbourhoods; and
Meets EPs Quality Standards and advances the Code for Sustainable Homes programme.