‘This site is a hugely important residential development, not just for our borough but for the wider region’
How the Bold Forest Village Masterplan will be mapped out(Image: Local Democracy Reporting Service)
Councillors are set to discuss the ambitious masterplan that has been created for the Bold Forest Garden Village in St Helens.
The council’s cabinet is to be asked to approve the Bold Forest Garden Village Masterplan Framework, which focuses on how this allocated site will be “sustainably created to support the delivery of circa 3,000 new high-quality homes in a landscaped-led development”.
Two rounds of public consultation, including leaflet drops in the surrounding areas, public consultation events and an online site, have helped to shape the proposals positively.
That has helped shape the social infrastructure that is required to ensure benefits to the local community and mitigate impacts of growth on the local area. This has resulted in the inclusion of a proposed primary school and potential healthcare provision within a new local centre on site.
Cllr Richard McCauley, cabinet member for regeneration, said: “This site is a hugely important residential development, not just for our borough but for the wider region and it will help us deliver new social infrastructure and new homes for future generations from our borough, with a commitment to a minimum of 30 per cent of it being affordable homes.”
The masterplan identifies six character areas, providing key characteristics and opportunities for each area to shape different parts of the site so that they feel locally distinctive.
Cllr McCauley added: “The Bold Forest Garden Village Masterplan Framework is an essential tool to help us map out how to sustainably create this Local Plan allocated site, which is one of the biggest housing projects in the North West.
“It will ensure that a comprehensive, well connected, and well-designed development is delivered on the site, with the necessary supporting infrastructure. We know that residents living nearby, as well as those interested in potentially making it their new home, need to be assured that the challenges a site of this size are understood.
“This masterplan focuses on making sure that the right infrastructure is in place, which is why it includes a new local centre, alongside green spaces, funding for secondary school and SEND education, sport and leisure facilities and transport and infrastructure updates for the whole area too.”
Should councillors approve adoption of the Bold Forest Garden Village Masterplan Framework, there will be further studies this year including detailed design guidance and transport modelling that will aid its delivery.
The report will be discussed at the cabinet meeting next Wednesday, January 21.
