INTRODUCTION
Friends Farm Limited are pleased to invite you to take part in their public consultation on their emerging hybrid proposal for Land to the East of Shoebury Road, Great Wakering.
You are invited to provide feedback on the emerging proposal, which will be considered by the project team before a planning application is submitted to Rochford Council.
OVERVIEW OF THE EMERGING PROPOSAL
A mixture of up to 360 high-quality, energy-efficient new homes, accommodating the needs of first-time buyers, growing families, and those looking to downsize.
Policy-compliant affordable homes, supporting people to stay in the area they call they call home.
High-quality green open space, retaining the existing pond to create a central nature area.
Backed by supporting infrastructure, with a new community hub with space for potential facilities such as a doctor’s surgery, pharmacy and village shop.
Working with the Omnia Foundation to deliver a brand-new special educational needs school, keeping this provision in the district.
Equipped play areas for children as well as a brand-new community football pitch, equipped with changing facilities.
Enhancements to local biodiversity, with integrated green infrastructure and retained wildlife corridors.
OUR EMERGING PROPOSAL
BACKED BY COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE
The site is located to the south east of Great Wakering and lies on Land West of Shoebury Road. Located a short distance from local amenities and services and is served well by bus connections to Shoeburyness Station and the City of Southend
As such, the site is well placed to help Rochford meet its growing housing demand, all while providing brand new health and education infrastructure, and public open space for new and existing residents to enjoy.
Friends Farm are working with the Omnia Foundation to provide a brand new Special Educational Needs School for a maximum of 30 pupils. The school will cater to a range of abilities and needs, while offering a diverse range of programs focused on physical activity, arts, drama, cooking, and other non-conventional subjects.
With the Omnia Foundation currently looking for new home, this new facility will enable them to continue providing this vital provision in the district.
Friends Farm are aware of the local community’s concern regarding capacity with existing services and the pressure new homes may bring. That is why their emerging proposal includes a community hub with space for potential facilities such as a doctor’s surgery, pharmacy and village shop.
By working with the Omnia Foundation, the community will be able to benefit from access to a brand-new full-size football pitch. The new community pitch will be equipped with changing facilities which the community will be able to benefit from outside of school hours.
Friends Farm will deliver a high-quality development that people are proud of. Their proposal seeks to provide up to 360 high-quality homes, including a mix of affordable properties.
The emerging housing mix will accommodate the needs of first-time buyers, growing families, and those looking to downsize. From terraces, semi-detached and detached homes, these will be keeping with the local design character of Great Wakering.
The local landscape setting has been considered early in the design process to provide a development that respects and integrates with its context.
Key features include:
Attractive central park, enhancing the existing pond
Equipped areas of play with natural elements
Green walking routes throughout the site
Tree lined streets to enhance the street scene
Attractive and biodiverse planting scheme
Enhancement of existing trees and vegetation
Interaction with drainage features
From day one, Friends Farm have been committed to delivering at least 10% biodiversity net gain on the site. As part of the masterplan, dedicated green infrastructure has been intricately integrated into the strategy to enhance biodiversity net gain.
Along with retaining and enhancing the existing pond at the centre of the site, the buffer along the eastern boundary will serve as a wildlife corridor, maintaining the vegetation line along the boundary and preserving existing ecology.
Two vehicular accesses are proposed. The first off Shoebury Road, at the west of the site, with the second at the north of the site off New Road. This spine road will meander around the site, alongside green buffers and tree-lined verges to enhance the local street scene.
Friends Farm is working closely with the Essex Highways to ensure the surrounding road network can accommodate the additional traffic generated by the development. As a result, Friends Farms’ design process is informed by an up-to-date traffic study and, where necessary, mitigation measures will be put in place to upgrade the local road network.
Drainage is a key consideration during the design process and this aspect of the proposal will be prepared in consultation with the Lead Local Flood Authority.
To help further boost local habitats and ecology, a sustainable drainage system is proposed in swales running east-west along the green space creating an attractive landscape to alleviate surface water run-off.
Creating an attractive and walking neighbourhood has been core to the early design of the emerging masterplan. While the site does not contain a Public Right of Way, there are leisure routes that run around the nature reserve.
This provides an opportunity to create active travel routes that link up with those routes so new and existing residents can enjoy this space, while creating new and attractive routes for dog walkers.
To support active travel throughout the site, a 3-3.5m wide shared pedestrian and cycleway network is proposed to run alongside the spine road, through green corridors, public open spaces.
SITE CONTEXT
NEW SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL
NEEDS SCHOOL
HIGH-QUALITY HOMES
LANDSCAPE-LED
BIODIVERSITY
HIGHWAYS
DRAINAGE
IMPROVING CONNECTIVITY
PROJECT TIMESCALES
Public Consultation: Summer 2025 ————— Application Submission: Autumn 2025 ————— Determination: Spring 2026