An Aylesbury development from leading homebuilder Barratt and David Wilson Homes North Thames in partnership with the RSPB has recently won an award at the prestigious WhatHouse? awards.
Scooping Silver for ‘Best Partnership Scheme’ in the WhatHouse? Awards, Oakfield Village, the first phase of the wildlife-friendly Kingsbrook development, is full of features designed to attract wildlife, giving nature a home alongside new residents of the development.
The Best Partnership Scheme award is designed to highlight excellent partnerships forged between developers and other bodies. The groundbreaking partnership between Barratt and David Wilson Homes North Thames and the RSPB is the first of its kind in the UK and aims to set a new benchmark for nature-friendly housing developments in Britain.
Kingsbrook is the first scheme to pioneer this new approach and is designed to enable wildlife to thrive alongside new housing and residents. The first phase of Oakfield Village will provide 492 homes.
The overall Kingsbrook development benefits from wildlife corridors which allow nature to move around and through the green space and residential areas as well an abundance of open green space including ponds, parks, meadows, and orchards. The development has a sustainable urban drainage system where rainwater is directed along ‘rills’ and ‘swales’ on the surface, using nature to clean the water and providing a home for wildlife. Oakfield Village will provide 492 homes of the total 2,450 properties at Kingsbrook and many of the properties include wildlife-friendly features such as swift bricks, bat boxes and hedgehog highways.
Ian Sadler, Managing Director at Barratt and David Wilson Homes North Thames, said: “We are thrilled that Oakfield Village, part of our flagship Kingsbrook development, has won Silver for ‘Best Partnership Scheme’ in the WhatHouse? Awards this year. At Kingsbrook, we’re working alongside the RSPB to create a new nature-friendly community and we’re proud of the progress we are making together.”
Emma Marsh, Midlands Regional Director at the RSPB, said: “We’re so pleased that this partnership has been recognised by the industry. The work that the RSPB and Barratt and David Wilson Homes have been delivering at Kingsbrook shows that housing needs do not have to come at the expense of wildlife. By taking a nature-led approach to landscaping and building features, developers can not only offer an inspiring way to live but also help with protecting and encouraging the natural world to flourish.
“We hope that this award will raise awareness of what can be achieved when conservation is included in development plans.”