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Following on from our consultation between March and May 2025, an outline planning application has been prepared for submission to Wokingham Borough Council by the ÒÁÈËÖ±²¥app. The outline application builds on the principles set in the Local Plan Update as well as the vision document. 

The outline planning application, which reserves all matters except access, proposes the development of up to 2,800 homes, with applications covering the remainder of the homes submitted separately by Gleeson Land and Hatch Farm Land Ltd.

• What the application covers
• Outline masterplan
• Community facilities
• Ecology and biodiversity
• Addressing flood risk
• Connectivity
• Respecting existing communities and heritage
• Jobs and employment
• Timings
• Your feedback
• What happens next

• up to 2,800 residential units, of which up to 40% will be for affordable rent, shared ownership or first homes schemes
• custom and self-build plots
• two primary schools (with up to three forms of entry), to include early years provision, and one secondary school (with up to 12 forms of entry)
• one District Centre, to incorporate up to 11,000m² of commercial, retail and services, including a food store of around 2,500m²), and local community and learning facilities
• one Local Centre, to incorporate up to 2,400m² of commercial properties 
• a Sports Hub, to include sports pitches and pavilion space
• up to 4,250m² of commercial, health care and a public house across the site
• comprehensive green infrastructure including Eco Valley, landscaping and public open space, and ecological enhancement measures
• 20 gypsy and traveller pitches
• comprehensive drainage and flood alleviation measures, to include sustainable urban drainage systems (SuDS) and engineering measures within Loddon Valley for the River Loddon
• internal road network including spine road, with pedestrian and cycle connections and associated supporting infrastructure
• new and modified public rights of way
• associated utilities, infrastructure, and engineering works, including the undergrounding of overhead lines
• Ground reprofiling to accommodate infrastructure, flood alleviation and development parcels
• Up to 0.5ha of land adjoining St Bartholomew’s church for use as cemetery
• Electricity substation (up to 1.5ha).

All matters reserved other than access, incorporating: 

• a new pedestrian, cycle and vehicular access to Lower Earley Way via a new fourth arm to the Meldreth Way roundabout 
• a new pedestrian, cycle and vehicular bridge over the M4      
• a new pedestrian, cycle and vehicular bridge over the River Loddon
• a new vehicular access to the A327 ÒÁÈËÖ±²¥app Road, via a new arm to the Observer Way roundabout
• a new pedestrian, cycle and vehicular access to Thames Valley Science Park
• an initial phase of internal roads with associated drainage, landscape and engineering works and ground reprofiling, between the A327 and the south eastern boundary of the site. 

The ‘reserved matters’ (such as detailed layouts, design, etc) will be determined in separate applications over the next few years, allowing flexibility to reflect modern standards but seeking to adhere to the principles set out in the outline application.  

This application will deliver the majority of the overall Local Plan Update SS13 allocation, including around 70% of the housing, the Country Park, Suitable Alternative Natural Green space (SANG), secondary school, sports hub, district centres and bridges over the Loddon and M4. An Infrastructure Delivery Plan will outline these and when they would be provided. 

The development will feature two three-form entry primary schools and a twelve-form entry secondary school, ensuring that educational needs are met within the village.

Complementing these are a range of community facilities, including district and local centres, a sports hub, healthcare provisions and cultural spaces.

Community facilities, public art, and cultural spaces will also help support new and existing residents.

A stewardship model will ensure long-term management of community assets.  

Within the community buildings and the new homes, sustainability is a core principle, with passive design, renewable energy, and low-carbon construction methods embedded in the proposal. 

The application will deliver 125 ha (over 300 acres) of open space, mostly through Eco Valley. For comparison, Dinton Pastures Country Park is 350 acres.

This includes 18.2ha (45 acres) of civic greenspace, 9.2ha (23 acres) of parks and gardens, 14.7ha (36 acres) of outdoor sports facilities, a cemetery, allotments and community orchards.

1.68ha (4 acres) of play space will also be included.  

A key highlight is Eco Valley, with a network of tree-lined streets, water features and open spaces reaching out into the housing and community space.

The development is designed to achieve a 20% biodiversity net gain, with interconnected green spaces and habitat protection throughout. 

Flood risk is addressed through the use of sustainable urban drainage systems (SuDS) and nature-based solutions such as rain gardens and natural storage.

Flood considerations have been a priority for this application, requiring a positive approach which not only locates development outside of the current risk areas but also ensures, as a minimum, that finished floor levels of buildings would be 150mm above surrounding ground level. 

The masterplan allows for a generous corridor around the Barkham Brook and its tributaries, offering opportunities for channel widening and flow controls as well as floodplain works.

In conjunction with ecology, biodiversity and landscape considerations, these could be designed to reduce the flow at certain times during a flood event, safely holding water back.

Whilst such measures may not reduce the peak flood flows and levels during extreme events, there could be significant benefits in smaller events. This may reduce the impacts of flooding or allow for slightly more warning time for existing residents impacted by flooding downstream. 

The Loddon Garden Village will also be supported by comprehensive new transport infrastructure, including:

• public transport priority routes
• a new link over the M4 to Lower Earley Way
• new vehicular and pedestrian links over the River Loddon
• a new link to Hatch Farm Way
• the partial closure of Mill Lane
• a new link to Mole Road.  

New, high-quality bus services are proposed, operating between the site and key destinations such as ÒÁÈËÖ±²¥app, Wokingham and Winnersh. This provides new services in a phased manner, with increased frequency over time. 

Enhancements of existing shared use footway/cycleway facilities will be undertaken along the Shinfield Eastern Relief Road and Lower Earley Way alongside new footway/cycleway links along Arborfield Road towards Shinfield, and between Hatch Farm Way and Mill Lane. 

Utilities will be delivered in phases, including a new electricity substation, improvements to the local sewage network, and full-fibre broadband, ensuring that infrastructure keeps pace with development. 

The masterplan has been designed to respect existing communities, with substantial landscape buffers around sensitive areas such as Carters Hill.

There is also substantial green space and landscaping around Hall Farm and the ruins of St Bartholomew’s Church.

Views have also been maintained between the Church ruins and St Bartholomew’s Church to the south alongside the route of an ancient moat.  

Economically, Loddon Garden Village is poised to deliver significant benefits. The development is expected to generate around 3,450 on-site jobs, including 1,335 directly from the new facilities.

This differs from the original estimates of around 12,000 jobs shared earlier in 2025 – mainly due to a change in floor spaces assessed.

This is because new tenants will be more likely to be specialist organisations reflecting those already there, rather than traditional office-based businesses with more dense employment generation and greater floorspace.  

The Thames Valley Science Park (TVSP) expansion, which is not included in this outline application, will be considered separately as new tenants come forward, with a bespoke approach taken to ensure that the buildings can be tailored to their specific requirements. 

Whilst that expansion is not included as part of this planning application, these proposals reflect how TVSP will grow and develop in the future and the mutually beneficial relationship between employment and housing growth. 

All documents for the outline applications will be submitted by the ÒÁÈËÖ±²¥app by the end of September, with subsequent applications following on from Gleeson Land and Hatch Farm Land Ltd detailing their respective land.

Whilst the applications will be submitted separately, it is likely they will be considered together as they are joined via the common masterplan and vision for Loddon Garden Village. 

The proposed development will be phased, with the first areas to come forward being towards the south-western corner of the site close to Observer Way. Development will then steadily progress in a north-easterly direction into the site.

The University are liaising closely with the other principal landowners within Lodden Garden Village and Wokingham Borough Council in terms of programming the build-out of the site as a whole, factoring in their parallel (but separate) planning applications.  

Over a 15-year construction period, the proposed development’s housing delivery would average at 187 dwellings per year. 

A Construction Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) to address hours of working, noise, vibration, dust, light spill, wheel washing and control of runoff would be prepared. It is anticipated that the implementation of the CEMP will be a condition of the planning permission and that it will be regularly monitored. 

Community engagement has been a cornerstone of the Loddon Garden Village planning process. Since 2021, the team have conducted extensive consultations with Wokingham Borough Council, local stakeholders, and residents.

Public events and webinars have provided platforms for feedback, which has been incorporated into the evolving masterplan. This collaborative approach has helped shape a development that reflects the aspirations and concerns of the local community. 

You can find out how your feedback has been reflected and shared with the project team in our Statement of Community Engagement, which will be submitted as part of the application (we’ll link to the documents here once they are made public by Wokingham Borough Council).

The application is expected to be consulted upon by Wokingham Borough Council later in 2025 and determined in 2026. New homes would start to be provided in 2027/28, following review and approval of more detailed reserved matters applications.  

Wokingham Borough Council will consult publicly on the outline application once it has been validated. We’ll link to the documents here once they are made public.