Places for People and Barratt Redrow launch ground-breaking partnership to deliver one of the UK’s most pioneering new communities

Places for People (PfP) and Barratt Redrow have today unveiled a landmark joint venture (JV) to build a pioneering 8,500 home community in East Hertfordshire, in one of the UK’s most significant placemaking projects in decades.

Building on the success of previous partnership schemes, the joint venture brings together PfP’s master developer expertise and social enterprise mission with Barratt Redrow’s reputation as the UK’s leading homebuilder and represents a step change in how major new communities are delivered. The organisations will unlock the scale, pace and innovation required to bring forward homes, supporting infrastructure and green spaces at unprecedented speed - achieving far more than either could alone.

The joint venture will create interconnecting villages on the outskirts of Gilston which will be set within 660 hectares of public open space, restored historic parkland, meadows and woodland. The six walkable villages will deliver 8,500 homes, including at least 1,950 affordable homes contributing significantly to East Hertfordshire’s long-term housing strategy and helping to ease pressure on local families, first-time buyers and key workers.

The network of interconnected villages has been designed from the outset as a pioneering new model for 21st century intergenerational living that balances town and country living and places wellbeing and access to nature at its heart.  

The recently approved Strategic Landscape Masterplan (SLMP) confirms the depth of this vision, securing 15km of heritage trails, over 410 hectares of integrated green spaces as well as orchard and allotments that make it a place where people can reconnect with nature in their daily lives.  

The joint venture will deliver for future generations as well as provide much needed homes in the area to support the existing local community. 

It is forecast to generate over £6 billion in economic impact, creating thousands of local jobs, apprenticeships and new opportunities for local businesses across Hertfordshire. Plans also include 29,000 sqm of commercial space, supporting a circular local economy alongside a long-term stewardship model designed to ensure the community continues to thrive for future generations. The development’s commercial space will create new opportunities for start-up businesses and nurture innovative and entrepreneurial community concepts.  

The joint venture comes shortly after the government launched the National Housing Bank and committed to seven new towns across the UK as part of its ambition to build 1.5million homes by 2029.

It also amplifies the strength of collaboration, ambition and bold rethinking on how communities can live, move and grow; and highlights how social value can reshape the future of new towns.  

Greg Reed, CEO of Places for People comments:  

“The UK cannot meet its housing targets without partnerships that deliver differently. Our vision for this development is a new blueprint for modern garden towns, shaped by deep community insight and a commitment to doing things the right way from day one.

”By combining Places for People’s long-term stewardship and social value approach with Barratt Redrow’s exceptional capability to deliver homes at scale and like-minded approach to social value, we can accelerate one of the most significant new communities in the UK.  

“This partnership unlocks delivery at a pace and scale that neither organisation could achieve alone and ensures we deliver the infrastructure, green space and high-quality homes that people deserve.

“They say the best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago, and with Gilston we did just that. It's taken two decades to get to this point, and now we are ready to roll.”

David Thomas, Chief Executive at Barratt Redrow, comments:  

“Working with Places for People offers the opportunity to show what large-scale, responsible, community-led development looks like.

“Our new joint venture will deliver up to 8,500 new homes, featuring our three brands, Barratt Homes, David Wilson Homes and Redrow, plus Places for People, so giving customers the best possible choice for their new home. This is a once-in-a-generation project where we can create a modern garden town, connecting people to nature, and growing with the community.”

For further information visit: the Gilston Park Estate website.

Places for People and Barratt Redrow were supported by Savills, Dentons, JLL and Shakespear Martineau  

Image credit: Grant Associates