FAQs

The 15.08 ha is located on the eastern edge of Fradley, immediately east of Church Lane and on the northern side of Fradley lane, bounded to the east by the A38.

The site is currently predominantly in arable agricultural use and as such it performs poorly in terms of biodiversity. It is currently not accessible to the community apart from existing public right of way footpaths that cross the site. These will be retained and enhanced as part of the landscaped open space proposals for the site.

The site is located outside the greenbelt and occupies a highly sustainable location on the edge of the settlement boundary of Fradley. The Lichfield District Council Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) has assessed the site as being “Suitable”, “Available” and “Achievable” for residential development. As such the site is being promoted by Bloor Homes through the new Lichfield Local Plan to contribute to addressing housing need in the district.

A Local Plan is a document that sets out the vision for future development in a local authority area. Government requires that all local authorities have an up-to-date local plan in place and review it at least every five years.

Lichfield District Council’s existing Local Plan was adopted in 2015 and is now considered significantly out of date. The Council is now carrying out a review of the Local Plan to produce a new plan and the site is being promoted for allocation in the review to contribute to housing need.

The Local Plan review will need to demonstrate that the district’s housing needs are being met and proposals by the Government to reform the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) will see the number of homes that need to be delivered in the District increase significantly.

With the existing Local Plan now significantly out of date and housing targets increasing, Bloor Homes is beginning to process of preparing an outline planning application while continuing to promote the site through the new Local Plan. This will enable the early delivery of much-needed new homes at a site that has been acknowledged by the District Council as being suitable for this purpose, protecting sites that have been deemed less suitable in light of anticipated shortfalls in housing delivery numbers in the district under the new National Planning Policy Framework.

Local Plans are the key documents through which local planning authorities set out a vision and framework for the future development of the area, engaging with their communities in doing so. Local Plans address needs and opportunities in relation to housing, the local economy, community facilities and infrastructure. The Local Plan provides a degree of certainty for communities, businesses and investors, and a framework for guiding decisions on individual planning applications.

Local planning authorities, such as Lichfield District Council, have a statutory responsibility to maintain an up-to-date Local Plan, and national policy indicates that Local Plans should be regularly reviewed, with the expectation this is done at least every five years.

Bloor Homes is preparing an outline planning application for a landscape-led development of new homes and green open spaces. The proposed new neighbourhood could deliver:

A landscape-led development providing up to 280 high quality homes in a range of styles and tenures to meet local housing need, with circa 50% of the site area provided as open space, including extensive landscaped public open space and habitat areas.
Up to 40% of the new homes (circa 112) would be affordable homes, providing opportunities for key workers and people on low incomes to secure a home of their own in Fradley.
As part of the housing mix, there are opportunities to provide homes for people looking to downsize into more manageable homes or secure an accessible property.
Retention of existing trees and the majority of hedgerows, enhanced by additional planting.
Extensive green public open space and habitat creation, boosting the biodiversity value of the site to exceed both national and local level Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements.
A range of community open space facilities to be informed by local feedback.
Play facilities for young people, for which there is an identified need in Fradley.
A community building that could fulfil a range of uses and the potential to provide a pub, to be informed by local aspirations and feedback.
A network of walking and cycling routes through extensive green public open space on land that has previously been largely inaccessible to the public. Existing public rights of way will also be retained and enhanced to improve accessibility for the whole community.
A package of highways safety improvements, including a new roundabout and an extension of the 30mph on Fradley Lane, an improved junction of Fradley Lane and Church Lane, provision of a bus stop on Church Lane, extensive walking and cycling infrastructure provision, and land safeguarded for any potential future improvements to the A38 slip road.
A sustainable and potentially gas-free development with all homes provided with measures such as PV cells, air source heat pumps, EV charging infrastructure, and very high levels of insulation and energy efficiency.
Significant investment into local infrastructure such as healthcare and education, informed by consultation with statutory bodies such as the NHS and local education authority and secured via legal agreement.
Unlike other recent proposals in Fradley which were brought forward by land promoters to gain planning before being sold on, this is a housebuilder-led proposal which will be delivered by Bloor Homes, a high-quality, five star rated, family-owned company.

We are proposing high-quality new homes that will be sustainably designed to achieve low carbon living. This will likely include a range of house types, from starter homes and adaptable homes for later living through to larger family homes.

An outline planning applications is currently being prepared which will set out broad principles of development. Details such as layout and precise type of new homes would be established in subsequent Reserved Matters planning applications, which will be subject to further consultation with the community.

Up to 40% of the new homes will be affordable homes, providing an opportunity for key workers and people on low incomes to secure a home in Fradley. We are happy to discuss with the Local Authority the potential to apply Local Occupancy Criteria to affordable homes to ensure that people with local connections are prioritised.

This is a matter for the Local Authority. We are happy to discuss with the Local Authority the potential to apply Local Occupancy Criteria to affordable homes to ensure that people with local connections are prioritised.

All homes will be built in accordance with the latest version of the Building Regulations or the Future Homes Standards in place when construction commences, which both set ambitious construction and energy efficiency standards.

You can find out more about the approach that Bloor takes towards sustainability here: www.bloorhomes.com/buying-guide/sustainability

The vast majority of existing landscape features such as hedgerows and trees will be retained, with removals being minimised to that required to allow for highway and drainage infrastructure. This, alongside the creation and management of new landscape planting, trees and SuDS features will provide new habitats and enhance the quality of the existing habitats - improving the biodiversity value of the site.

We are conscious of the ever-increasing importance of that ensuring development is sustainable, protecting and enhancing natural habitats and green infrastructure as much as possible whilst delivering much needed homes for people and families.

The proposals for Fradley will see around 50% of the total site area dedicated to providing extensive areas of open space, including landscaped public open space, habitat areas and play areas. The proposals will be informed by an ecological survey and will seek to demonstrate Biodiversity Net Gain in excess of local and national requirements.

The planning application being prepared is an outline application which sets out broad principles of development. Details such as layout and precise type of new homes would be established in a subsequent Reserved Matters planning application(s), which will be subject to further consultation with the community.

Vehicular access to the proposed development will primarily be taken from a new roundabout created on Fradley Lane to the southwest of the site. The new roundabout junction will create a new gateway to the village approaching from the A38 to the southeast and will help to control traffic speeds on Fradley Lane, a concern cited in recent Parish Council minutes. A speed limit change is proposed to the south of the proposed roundabout so that the posted speed limit is 30mph along the site frontage on Fradley Lane.

The proposals will include the safeguarding of a parcel of land adjacent to the A38 which will provide the opportunity for the local highways authority and national highways to provide improvements to the junction with the A38 where the sliproad is currently suboptimal.

Access for pedestrians and cyclists would be provided at a number of points in addition to the primary vehicular access. A shared footway/cycleway will be provided along Fradley Lane to connect to the Church Lane/Fradley Lane junction. Uncontrolled crossings would be provided on Fradley Lane and Church Lane to enable connectivity to the main desire lines to the west of the site. A bus stop will also be provided on Church Lane which would enable local bus services to stop in close proximity to the site.

The layout of the Church Lane/Fradley Lane junction will be improved to provide a more conventional priority T-junction arrangement and improve pedestrian/cycle crossing facilities.

The development itself will incorporate a network of walking and cycling routes set amongst extensive landscaped open space.

The new roundabout junction will create a new gateway to the village approaching from the A38 to the southeast and will help to control traffic speeds on Fradley Lane, a concern cited in recent Parish Council minutes. A speed limit change is proposed to the south of the proposed roundabout so that the posted speed limit is 30mph along the site frontage on Fradley Lane.

The layout of the Church Lane/Fradley Lane junction will be improved to provide a more conventional priority T-junction arrangement and improve pedestrian/cycle crossing facilities.

A new bus stop will be provided on Church Lane to enable residents at the new neighbourhood to access existing bus services.

The site is currently largely comprised of improved agricultural land, which is of relatively low value in terms of biodiversity. The retention of existing trees and hedgerows, along with the planting of hundreds of new trees and other plants and the use of SuDS features to create new wetland features, will create new habitats. This will significantly boost the biodiversity value of the site, delivering Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) in excess of both national and local level requirements. This means that the development will deliver at least 10% BNG above the baseline unit value, and at least 20% above the biodiversity unit value of any habitats lost, through the retention and enhancement of existing habitats.

Bloor Homes is signed up to the Homes for Nature programme which will see the installation of swift nesting boxes in every new home and hedgehog highways between gardens.

The site is located within Flood Zone 1 of the Environment Agency Flood Map, and as such has no flood risk associated with it. Our surface water drainage strategy for the development has the potential to provide an improvement over the current situation for the surrounding area, as well as delivering biodiversity enhancements through the creation of wetland habitats.

Any planning consents will include a condition for the agreement of a Construction Management Plan with the Local Authority to ensure that all construction is well managed and minimises its impact on the surrounding area.

We are at an early stage in the process and have not yet submitted an outline planning application. We hope to submit an outline application in December 2024/January 2025. This is likely to be determined by Lichfield District Council in the Spring of 2025. If the outline application is approved, we will then prepare a Reserved Matters planning application(s) setting out more detail of future phases of development, such as house types, landscaping proposals etc. This will be informed by further consultation with the community. Assuming the first Reserved Matters application is submitted later in 2025, it could be estimated that this would be determined by late 2025/early 2026, enabling work to potentially start early in 2026. However, this is an estimate and precise timescales are very much dependent on the planning system.

A key consideration with a planning proposal such as this is to ensure that local services receive the investment they need to accommodate housing growth in the local area. The development will generate significant investment into local infrastructure such as healthcare and education, and this will be informed by consultation carried out by Lichfield District Council with statutory bodies such as the NHS and local education authority and will be secured via legal agreement between Bloor Homes and the Council.

In addition to this direct investment into schools, healthcare, highways and other local services, the development will also provide Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) payments in excess of £1 million.

Bloor Homes has created a dedicated website – www.bloorhomesfradley.com - to provide an opportunity for members of the community to view our emerging plans and provide feedback on your priorities for new homes, open spaces and facilities in Fradley to help shape a development that meets the needs of the local community now and in the future.

Once we submit our outline planning application, there will be a further opportunity to provide input and comment through the Council’s statutory consultation on the submitted plans.

If outline planning permission is granted, we will then carry out further consultation on matters of detail such as architecture, detailed layout of homes, landscaping etc as we prepare a subsequent reserved matters planning application.

If you would like to be kept updated on this process and opportunities to take part in further engagement, please ensure you opt-in to receive email updates on the project when completing our online questionnaire.