Brinnington, Stockport

About Brinnington and its location

Brinnington is situated within the Stockport borough of Greater Manchester. Prior to our site commencement in November 2016, the area was ranked within the 5% most deprived areas nationally, and therefore regeneration was a major priority for the Council. The overall objective for the development was to develop the three sites to increase housing choice in Brinnington, to provide greater opportunity for successful families to continue to live in the neighbourhood, and to attract economically independent families to the area, thus creating a more mixed balanced and sustainable community.

This development is an excellent example of a regeneration project as met its primary objectives in diversifying the community. The success of this development has been recognised by RTPI as it was awarded the Best Regeneration Project at the 2019 Royal Town Planning Institute North West Awards for Planning Excellence.

• Start date: 2016
• Total number of dwellings: 274
• Private homes for sale: 264
• Affordable houses: 10

Project challenges and how we overcame them

Allocation of Land: The two larger parcels of land were located within Green Belt and therefore development could only take place under if very special circumstances were demonstrated. The Council considered that the overwhelming need for regeneration was sufficient to meet this test.

Local Objectors: The Blackberry Lane site impacted the adjacent Reddish Vale Country Park which was contested by local action group. Following grant of planning, the group registered a complaint with the Local Government Ombudsman. When this was not upheld, a Judicial Review was sought which was decided against them.

Separate Land Parcels: The development was split between three parcels of land all within a quarter mile radius. The sites were constructed simultaneously which posed potential traffic management issues. A comprehensive traffic management plan was put in place which ensured minimum disruption to local residents.

Topography: The steep topography of the two larger sites caused development difficulties with levels and drainage. To overcome these issues, a 5m high retaining wall and pumping station were constructed to create development platforms and ensure satisfactory drainage disposal.