New MK '˜daughter settlement' of 20,000 homes could engulf countryside and villages

Gallagher Estates is seeking permission to build a ‘daughter settlement’ on a massive chunk of land running from Little Linford, through Haversham and up to Castlethorpe.

Gallagher’s already own or have options on 900 acres of land – 85 per cent of the site.

Recently they bought the 300 acre Hall Farm at Little Linford from the former High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire, the Hon Richard Godber.

The company this week revealed its proposals in a 160 page document under MK council’s Plan:MK, which is under pressure from the government to build more than 40,000 new homes – 1,750 dwellings a year – before 2031.

So far it is falling short of its targets – a point seized upon by Gallagher Estates.

The developers state in their special North of Milton Keynes report: “Clearly, there has been a significant delay in the council bringing forward Plan:MK... There is now a clear and urgent need for completing the review of the Core Strategy.”

Already rural councillor and former council leader Andrew Geary, a farmer himself, has vowed to fight Gallagher’s proposals in true Winston Churchill style.

“I won’t fight them on the beaches, but I’ll certainly meet them in the fields... I will fight all I can to preserve our villages,” he said.

But Lib Dem councillor Sam Crooks, pictured left, has welcomed Gallagher’s’ plan with open arms. “It’s great news. It addresses our housing shortage and increases our credibility with neighbouring authorities,” he said.

The ‘daughter settlement’ town would initally consist of 10,000 homes, but there is enough land to build 10,000 more in the future, say Gallagher Estates.

The site is bordered by the motorway on the east and the railway on the west. A transport link would be provided by re-opening the old train station at Castlethorpe.

Gallagher’s pledge to protect the character of the affected villages with the use of ‘green buffers’ of fields and trees.