The circa 14.4 hectare (ha) site for the proposed development is located on the eastern edge of the settlement of Hockley Heath. While the village of Hockley Heath itself is situated within the Borough of Solihull, the site is situated within the neighbouring local authority of Warwick District.
The site is sustainably located approximately 500m from the centre of Hockley Heath with its range of community services including a primary school, dental surgeries, restaurants and pubs, shops and recreation ground.
There is a public right of way located along the southwest and western boundaries of the site which will be retained.
Taylor Wimpey was formed by the merger of George Wimpey and Taylor Woodrow in 2007. With a history dating back to the 19th Century, Taylor Wimpey is one of the largest homebuilders in the UK and aims to be the nation’s leading residential developer for creating value and delivering quality. Taylor Wimpey is passionate about working with local people, businesses, local authorities and its customers to build aspirational homes.
Find you more about Taylor Wimpey at www.taylorwimpey.co.uk.
Taylor Wimpey is preparing an outline planning application for a sustainable new neighbourhood at the site east of Hockley Heath, including:
- Up to 330 high-quality homes in a range of sizes and styles.
- Up to 50% will be affordable homes including shared ownership homes for first time buyers.
- Scope to provide accessible homes for local people looking to downsize.
- A landscape-led approach to development with the retention of existing mature trees and hedgerows, bolstered by extensive new planting to significantly increase tree cover across the site.
- A significant proportion of the site area to be retained as extensive landscaped open space including landscape buffering and biodiversity areas.
- A range of outdoor recreational facilities including children’s play areas, community garden/orchard and allotments.
- The retention and enhancement of existing public rights of way, alongside the creation of new walking and cycling routes.
- Vehicular, pedestrian and cycle access via a new priority junction with Aylesbury Road.
- Tree-lined street frontages within the neighbourhood.
- Investment to support local infrastructure, such as healthcare and education.
The proposed development site occupies a highly sustainable location on the edge of the settlement boundary of Hockley Heath.
Local planning authorities are required by the Government to update their Local Plans every five years. The current development plan for Warwick District was adopted in September 2017 and has now fallen significantly out of date. Warwick District Council has acknowledged it needs to prepare a new local plan which it is preparing jointly with Stratford-on-Avon District Council through the emerging new South Warwickshire Local Plan.The site of the proposed development has been identified as a preferred option for housing delivery as part of an emerging allocation, SG24 ‘Hockley Heath Group’, in the Preferred Options (regulation 18) version of the South Warwickshire Local Plan (SWLP).
The Council’s next stage of consultation (Regulation 19) is scheduled for December 2025.
Changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) announced by the Government in late 2024 has significantly increased the number of homes Warwick District will need to deliver, from 653 to 1,062 homes per year.
A new grey belt policy was also introduced in the NPPF. This allows development in some areas of Green Belt, provided certain criteria are met. Grey belt includes land that ‘does not strongly contribute’ to Green Belt purposes which are set out in the NPPF. While the site at Hockley Heath is located within the Green Belt, it occupies a highly sustainable location and meets the criteria for grey belt land. On this basis it has been promoted through the emerging new South Warwickshire Local Plan as a grey belt site to meet future housing needs in Warwick District and has been identified as part of a preferred option for housing delivery in the emerging plan.
The new NPPF also requires that local authorities are able to demonstrate a five-year housing land supply. This is the amount of land that the Council must identify to ensure there are sufficient deliverable sites for residential development over the next five years. Warwick District Council currently cannot demonstrate a five-year supply of deliverable housing land. In light of this, an outline planning application for the site will help to contribute to meeting this housing delivery shortfall at a sustainable location.
In light of the significantly increased housing targets for the district, Taylor Wimpey is preparing outline plans for the site alongside the ongoing process of preparing the local plan. This will help to ensure the delivery of homes at an early stage in the plan period, assisting Warwick District Council in maintaining housing supply to meet identified needs.
An outline planning application establishes the broad principles of development, such as access arrangements, an illustrative concept layout, number of homes and the general extent of development.
If outline planning consent is granted, a detailed planning application called a reserved matters planning application will follow. This would include more detail such as architecture, materials, a detailed layout and a landscaping plan, and would be subject to further consultation with the local community before being submitted for determination. Both outline and reserved matters planning applications are subject to statutory consultation carried out by the Local Planning Authority (Warwick District Council).
Up to 50% of the new homes proposed for Hockley Heath will be affordable homes, in line with the “golden rules” set out by government for development on sites that were previously in the Green Belt. This will include a mix of homes for social rent and shared ownership homes for first time buyers.
Taylor Wimpey is committed to building great homes and creating thriving communities. Embedding sustainability across the business, delivering high-quality homes and places where customers can enjoy a more sustainable lifestyle are key priorities.
It is envisaged that our new neighbourhood at Hockley Heath will provide homes built to the Future Homes Standard. This will see all homes equipped with air source heat pumps, PV (solar) panels, EV charging points and very high standards of insulation.
From the outset, the development has been landscape-led, being shaped as much as possible by existing landscape features such as hedgerows, trees and field patterns. There is an opportunity to provide a strong landscape framework at the edges of the site to soften the visual effect of the new development.
The landscape-led approach will see the retention of existing higher-value habitats such as mature trees and hedgerows at field boundaries. Significant additional planting will increase tree cover across the site and provide habitat enhancement.
The site area is located in Flood Zone 1 of the Environment Agency’s flood map for planning, meaning it is at the lowest risk from flooding and is acceptable for housing development.
There is an existing watercourse to the south of the site with an associated surface water flood route and development will avoid this area. Surface water drainage on the site will be managed by a sustainable drainage system (SuDS), incorporating attenuation basins at key locations across the site. These will attenuate surface water runoff from the proposed new neighbourhood. This will ensure that surface water discharge rates do not exceed existing levels and, where possible, will provide betterment over the existing surface water drainage on the site and in the surrounding area. With appropriate planting, the proposed attenuation areas will also deliver biodiversity benefits through the provision of additional wetland habitats.
Vehicular, cycle and pedestrian access to the new neighbourhood is proposed to be taken via a new priority junction with Aylesbury Road. This junction would be located approximately 500m northwest of its priority junction with the A3400 Stratford Road.
The access junction would be provided in accordable with the Warwickshire Design Guide, with visibility splays of 120m achieved in both directions from a point 2.4m behind the proposed access give way line. A separate emergency access is also proposed from the B4101 Aylesbury Road via an existing farm access to the site.
A new 3m wide shared footway/cycleway is proposed along both sides of the access road which will tie into existing pedestrian infrastructure which provides a direct and continuous link into Hockley Heath village centre. Tactile paving and dropped kerbs will be included at the site access junction along with a central pedestrian refuge.
The existing public rights of way running through the site will be retained and enhanced within landscaped public open space. These will provide separate pedestrian accesses to the neighbourhood from the existing network, and there will be opportunities to provide connections to these from the new walking routes proposed within the development.
The outline planning application will be supported by a transport assessment which will set out how traffic impacts have been assessed to ensure that the development can be accommodated without significantly impacting the existing network.
There are two public rights of way running through the development site. These will be retained and enhanced as part of the development proposals. The development itself will provide a network of new walking and cycling routes with the potential to link with the existing public rights of way and the wider network.
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 area. The proposed development will generate multi-million pound investment into local infrastructure such as healthcare and education. Specific details about any financial contributions will be informed by consultation carried out by Warwick District Council in liaison with Solihull Borough Council, seeking feedback from statutory bodies such as the local NHS Integrated Care Board and the local education authority on their requirements. Taylor Wimpey is keen to work with both councils to make sure contributions are targeted where they’re needed and where residents will feel the benefit.
All financial contributions will be agreed and secured via a legally-binding agreement (called a Section 106 agreement) between Taylor Wimpey and the council.
The development will also generate significant Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding.
Following this consultation, we will review all feedback we receive before finalising and submitting an outline planning application to Warwick District Council.
This consultation website will be updated with information about the submitted plans and email notifications will be sent to all who have opted-in to receive them advising of the outline planning submission.
Once the outline planning application has been submitted and registered by Warwick District Council, the council will carry out Statutory Consultation on the plans, seeking feedback from statutory bodies such as Lapworth and Hockley Heath Parish Councils, the local NHS Integrated Care Board, education providers and highways authorities, as well as members of the public.
The council will then make a decision on our outline planning application.
We want to ensure that the emerging proposals as much as possible with the priorities and aspirations of the local community in Hockley Heath and Lapworth parishes.
We have launched this dedicated consultation website which provides an opportunity for local residents to view and help shape the proposed development and to provide feedback on the proposed new homes, open spaces and community facilities.
As well as this online consultation, we are also presenting the information at a consultation drop-in exhibition. This will provide an additional opportunity for members of the community, including those who have limited access to the internet, to view the proposals, speak to members of the project team and provide feedback.
The details of the consultation exhibition are as follows:
Date: Thursday 25th September 2025
Venue: King George Memorial Hall, 2655 Stratford Road, Hockley Heath, B94 5NH
Time: 2pm – 6:30pm
If local residents have any queries, please contact our consultation team on 01225 667097 or hello@twhockleyheath.co.uk.
If you would like to be kept up to date about the new homes that will be available on this development if and when planning permission has been approved, you can do so by visiting the following webpage and clicking the ‘Register Interest’ button: https://www.taylorwimpey.co.uk/hockley-heath
If local residents have any queries, please contact our consultation team on 01225 667097 or hello@twhockleyheath.co.uk.