An exemplar sustainable urban extension

The Upton project, jointly sponsored by English Partnerships, The Prince’s Foundation and Northampton Borough Council, was conceived as a pioneering urban neighbourhood – to be held as national best practice in delivering sustainable urban extensions across the country. The design and development process was guided by a set of Design Codes.

Following a high profile competition, requiring an intensive design response, the Cornhill Estates / Fairclough Homes consortium was successfully appointed with Matrix Partnership acting as masterplanner, co-ordinating the inputs of six architectural practices to design 200 dwellings. The result of this approach is a fascinating blend of architectural styles ranging from traditional to modern, held within a cohesive urban framework.

The project achieves an ‘Excellent’ EcoHomes rating by incorporating solar heating, rain water harvesting, photovoltaics, passive ventilation, sheep’s wool insulation, green roofs and micro CHP.

The landscape or the development also follows sustainable principles, as demonstrated for example in the provision of stormwater-retaining swales that also provide small wildlife habitats within the development.