Northicote

Type/size: 184 dwellings – 164 houses & 20 flats

Location: Former Northicote School, Bushbury, Wolverhampton

Status: Planning approved

Contract Value: £27.5 Million

Construction Type: MMC- OSM Timber panelised system (Eco 200 by Local Homes)

Client: WV Living

Scheme Overview:

Northicote is a new housing scheme located within the Bushbury area of Wolverhampton. The scheme has been designed and is being constructed using Accord’s in-house architecture and construction teams which are a unique capability based within the framework of a social landlord. The houses are built in Accord’s timber frame factory (LoCaL Homes) which produces low carbon homes designed using fabric first principles.

The proposal for 184 dwellings is located on the former Northicote school site, a semi-circular shaped site contained by Northwood Park Road and bordered to the south by Northwood Park. The former school was demolished in 2018 only leaving some trees and grassland on the site before the start of the development.

The immediate vicinity is predominantly residential with a mixture of 2-3 storey dwellings with a low density massing. The site is surrounded by estates built at similar time and in the same style, with a road layout of urban blocks and cul-de-sacs. The local vernacular architecture is generally a mixture of 1940-50s red brick semi-detached houses with terracotta colour plain tile roofs, with some rendered houses.
Northwood Park dates from the construction of the whole estate, and incorporates a wooded area that predates it. Also, the park area consists of sport pitches, mostly grass land and additionally there are two children’s play areas.

The proposed highway layout responds to the site geometry and constraints by splitting the site into two connected halves and creating six new vehicular access points, with two new internal vertical roads and three new horizontal roads. There is a speed limit of 20mph within the estate and the internal road junctions will feature raised tables with block paving for traffic calming.

The relationship with the park is quite important from an urban design point of view and we have benefitted from this by creating a strong frontage of large houses overlooking the park, with a shared link / cyclepath running along the park’s boundary. The vertical roads that cross the site also ensure views towards the park from the distance.

Careful consideration has been given to the proposed street scenes, particularly towards Northwood Park Road where a strong and continuous frontage of houses has been created to face the road and mimic the opposite houses. Internally within the estate the position of the houses has been designed to make the most of the public space, with every house located at a corner being dual aspect and providing full height windows to both elevations, as opposed to having blank gable walls and unsurveilled areas.

The development comprises 164 houses with a mix of 2-bed, 3-bed and 4-bed houses. 26 of these will be affordable, being pepper-potted across the site and tenure-blind externally ensuring a successful integration amongst the sale units. The development also comprises 20 flats with a mix of 1-bed and 2-bed flats, all of which will be affordable and featuring a secure communal garden.

The design has retained as many of the existing trees as possible within the constraints of a new development, with especial consideration to the large trees of the north of site now being part of the proposed ‘wooded area’, a green amenity space towards the periphery road and the bus stop.

The external appearance of the buildings has been designed to respect and preserve the local character of the context of Bushbury, this is why all of the proposed houses are 2 storeys in height and have a domestic appearance featuring pitched roofs with slates and brick facades. In addition, a more contemporary language has been introduced through some elements such as the aluminium surrounds to windows, eaves trims, boxed gutters, door canopies, full height openings or fibre cement cladded areas.

The external areas particularly the front of the houses have been carefully detailed with block paving and the soft landscaped areas will provide opportunities for new trees and shrubs, enhancing the public realm and the experience for the pedestrians walking along the footpaths.

In summary, Northicote is a scheme thoughtfully designed and tailored for Bushbury, with the objective of addressing the housing shortage in the area for local residents particularly regarding the lack of offer of new build homes, and which will for certain have a positive impact in the surrounding neighbourhoods and communities.