Homes plan lacks community facilities, says council

A major new housing development that could transform the landscape south of Cambridge has been met with opposition from a parish council.

Plans for Cambridge South, a proposed development of 4,000 homes alongside a new country park with direct access to Cambridge South station and the Guided Busway, have been unveiled to residents in Great Shelford.

Developers, Pigeon and Lands Improvement, said half of the homes would be affordable housing and the scheme would help meet demand from workers at the Cambridge Biomedical Campus (CBC).

But Great Shelford Parish Council has highlighted concerns about lack of community facilities and said that "the site does not provide what is needed".

John Stanton, vice-chair of the Great Shelford Parish Council, said the plans did not include enough schools, community facilities, shops or cemetery space.

"As a parish council, we are concerned about the shortage of housing, but this site does not provide what is needed," he said.

On its website the developer said the proposed site falls within the CBC catchment area and "has the potential to deliver much-needed new homes within walking and cycling distance of growing major employers".

Annabel Sykes, from the parish council, said there were concerns that the development was being primarily designed for CBC workers, raising fears that local people could miss out. She said affordable housing around Cambridge is not always "genuinely affordable".

Sykes added: "It is social rent and social housing that are really needed to provide accommodation for lower-paid workers at the biomedical campus."

Pigeon and Lands Improvement said the proposals were still at an early stage and the public could learn more about them and share their views at exhibitions being held in October.

A planning application for the site is expected to be submitted in 2027.

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