Pictured above: Yew Tree Village green

The developers behind the multi-million pound proposals to create a new village community in Worcestershire with 800 new home have unveiled their exciting vision for the area.

Martyn Cartwright said Yew Tree Village, Droitwich, would provide an exceptional quality of life for all residents - including young people seeking their first homes and senior citizens enjoying high class facilities at the proposed retirement village.

The scheme would also create hundreds of jobs both during the construction and, in the long term, at the local centre and retirement village.

"This site offers an excellent opportunity to create a vibrant new addition to the existing community, with a carbon footprint that is minimized by helping to create a quality of life that is exceptional," said Mr Cartwright, director of Barberry Developments.

"Yew Tree Village will have homes for people at all stages of life along with health facilities, local shops and a generous amount of high quality public open space to create a new village community."

Mr Cartwright is keen to dispel many of the popular misconceptions concerning the development and has offered to create a steering group including Droitwich residents. Local people would then be able to work together with the developers and planners with the opportunity to influence the proposals as they move forward.

Barberry carried out extensive consultations after unveiling the scheme, in Droitwich, earlier this year. Many of the views expressed are reflected in the planning application, for outline planning consent, which has been submitted to Wychavon District Council by the Belbroughton-based developers. The council is now carrying out a three-week consultation.

Mr Cartwright said Yew Tree Village, which will include 40% social housing, would begin to address the growing demand for new homes in the Droitwich area.

The scheme includes an education contribution of up to £1 million, significant potential for job creation, around 40% of open space including an orchard, allotments, adventure playground and sports pitches, as well as new cycleways and footpaths.

Mr Cartwright added: "Of course we are aware that whenever a new housing development is proposed there will always be people that support the idea and those that oppose it. We have invested hundreds of thousands of pounds in contracting leading consultants to ensure that the masterplan creates a high quality retirement village scheme that is specific to the site and the surrounding context.

"With the adopted green belt, flood plain, M5 and few existing brown field opportunities within the town there is limited scope for Droitwich to provide suitable sites to meet future growth needs.  Yew Tree Village is therefore one of only a few deliverable opportunities.

"The fact is that there is a huge demand in Worcestershire, and indeed across the UK, for new private homes and social housing and without schemes of this nature we will never begin to address that shortfall.

"The application at Yew Tree Village provides for a 40% allocation of affordable housing. This is significantly in excess of Wychavon's current adopted requirement under the 2006 local plan of 30%, and meets the aspirations of emerging policy. This level of allocation is also in acknowledgment of the considerable under provision over the previous years."

He added: "The application makes provision for an education contribution, depending on the final housing mix, of between £700,000 and £1,050,000 in accordance with the education authorities requirements. The development will provide additional footpaths, cycle ways and bridle paths connecting into existing routes. The scheme will provide additional bus stops, lay-bys and funding for a bus service through the development."

Approximately 40% of the development will be open space providing equipped children's play areas, adults/youth outdoor sports facilities and casual outdoor space. In addition, financial contributions will be made towards more formal offsite sports pitches.

The development provides for allotments and a community orchard. A local centre will be provided with local re-cycling facilities. It will also provide for a retirement village with up to 200 units and apartments, both meeting future demand and addressing the current shortfall in care provision in Wychavon.

Mr Cartwright added: "The development will provide significant employment opportunities not only in construction jobs in the short term but, in the longer term, significant employment opportunities in the local centre and the extra care village. Wychavon can currently only demonstrate a housing land supply between 2.07 and 3.3 years depending on the method of analysis used.  In any event this is a significant shortfall from the five-year supply required by central government."

Droitwich is the largest town in Wychavon, providing a range of higher order services and facilities to existing residents.  As such it is expected that the town will provide significant growth over the proposed plan period to 2030 as a higher order settlement.