About us
The Future of Eddington
At Eddington, we aim to create a vibrant residential community featuring highly sustainable homes and well-used community facilities. Our vision includes using innovative solutions to address environmental issues related to energy, water, materials, and transport.
The updated proposals we’re developing reflect our original vision to create a place that is long-lasting, ambitious and sustainable, while addressing the lack of affordable housing for the University’s staff and providing accommodation for post-graduate students.
- Integrate sustainable design principles
- Create an exemplar in community placemaking
- Secure the University’s long-term future
- Support the wider Cambridge ecosystem
You can find out more infromation on our consultation boards, which you can view below:
Enhancing The Provision Of Homes In Eddington
The residential element of the outline permission for the North West Cambridge masterplan expired in 2023, meaning we are required to submit a new outline planning application for future homes at Eddington. This has provided us with the opportunity to take another look at how we can enhance aspects of future phases considering some of the lessons learnt from the first phase.
We are also taking into account some contextual changes since the original masterplan was approved, as there are significant affordability and availability housing challenges in Cambridge, while the global competition to attract and retain staff at the University has increased.
To enhance the future phases of Eddington and to ensure we can provide enough housing for our staff and the wider community, we’re including an uplift in the total number of homes while maintaining the current gentle density achieved in the first phase.
Our Guiding Principles - New Homes
Additional housing is needed in Cambridge
The new homes we are providing in Eddington respond to the strategic need to provide homes for University staff, as well as homes for the local community.
Enhancing the Delivery of New Housing
The updated plans we are bringing forward include looking at ways to increase the total number of homes provided in Eddington to over 5,000 within the previously consented development footprint. This will be achieved through gentle densification that is sensitive to existing communities surrounding the site.
As part of Phase 1, the University delivered key community facilities to support future densification, such as a new primary school, the Storey’s Field community centre, and a new local centre with retail units and a supermarket.
Key Worker Housing
Central to our proposals for Eddington is the delivery of housing for University staff and students. This includes key worker housing, offered at a discount to University staff, and homes for post-graduates. This is to maintain our position as a world-leading academic and research institution.
Housing for Local Communities
In addition to homes for University staff and post-graduate students, some of the homes we’ll be providing will be available as market housing, which will support the local housing market. The housing will bolster the Cambridge eco-system while supporting the University with recruitment and retention of staff.
Our Guiding Principles - Safe, Green and Accessible Public Realm
In the future phases, we are committed to creating new and enhanced green spaces. The first phase of Eddington highlighted the importance of using the space around buildings to create a safe, green, and accessible public realm.
We are looking at ways to integrate the site’s topography to create green spaces and wildlife habitats, combining open areas, new plantings, and zones for sports and play. This includes the continuation of Brook Leys along the western boundary adjacent to new homes.
Enhancing Eddington’s Public Realm and Green Spaces
- Create a green loop around the neighbourhood, incorporating a running route
- New play spaces for families and young people
- Pitches suitable for a variety of different sports
- Space for nature, with new and improved habitats to support a +10% Biodiversity Net Gain target
- Shared gardens that bring nature to doorsteps through playable, interactive and biodiverse space
- Green open space network to connect the existing and new neighbourhoods
Enhancing Integrated Sustainability
We want the future phases of Eddington to respond to the high sustainability aspirations achieved in Phase 1 and to continue providing a place to live and work that encourages and supports residents to live a sustainable lifestyle.
That ambition is underpinned by three key principles:
- Fostering healthy living
- Reducing the wholeplace carbon footprint
- Designed for the present and the future
Guided by these principles, we are exploring design methods to meet the highest level of building sustainability credentials, and we plan to introduce more unique, integrated features into Eddington to encourage healthy and sustainable living, including:
- Active transport features to promote walking, running and cycling, and discourage car ownership
- Integrated waste and recycling across the development
- Integration of energy saving technologies and techniques
- Optimising the shape of buildings to minimise their heat loss and material use
- Maximising renewable energy generation
- Designing with high performance building fabrics for energy efficient homes
- Targeting industry recognised sustainability certifications
