Saighton Camp is located on the south eastern edge of Chester adjacent to the A55 and covers an area of approximately 39 hectares. Saighton Camp was originally constructed between 1938 and 1939 for use as a military training camp during World War II.

Around 1983 the site was converted into a medical training centre for the Royal Medical Corps and used to train Territorial Army and Reservists medical personnel, as well as Regular Army medical personnel.

The camp was eventually closed in 1999 and subsequently sold. Hawksmoor acquired this site on behalf of retained clients, Commercial Estates Group in 2005. At the time the 97 acre brownfield site comprised the former Ministry of Defence barracks, extensive hardstanding and marital quarters.

Hawksmoor acted as project manager in the promotion of this major brownfield site for mixed use development. This involved working alongside the client and planning consultants to devise the planning strategy, managing the project team, reviewing key reports to ensure mitigation strategy/recommendations were commercially realistic and deliverable, liaison with planning and legal officers in the negotiation of the Section 106 obligations with Cheshire West and Chester Council, and reporting to clients on a regular basis.

Planning permission was obtained in late 2005 for phase 1, known as Crown Fields, comprising 105 executive homes on circa 6.5 hectares. The site was subsequently sold unconditionally by private treaty to Taylor Wimpey Homes following full market exposure. Taylor Wimpey have since built an exemplary scheme on the site.

Once development in this locality had been established by Crown Fields, two further planning applications followed in the regeneration of this large brownfield site.

In 2010 permission was granted, at appeal, for up to 375 dwellings across circa 12.15 hectares, known as Area A. This was then put to the market and sold to Bovis Homes in 2011. Bovis thereafter sold part of the site to Redrow Homes.

A further phase of 16.7 hectares, to the rear of the site, known as ‘Area B’ received planning permission for up to 295 dwellings in 2013 and later that year was sold to Redrow Homes.

The planning permission for Area A had included 5000m2 of B1 employment and a new primary school. The land was retained by our clients and the employment development was marketed. However, there was a lack of occupier demand and coupled with the widespread availability of existing floorspace in the local market area, it meant that there was no viable prospect of commercial development coming forward in this location.

As a consequence, CEG applied and were granted planning permission in 2015 for a further 120 dwellings on the employment and primary school land, now referred to as Area C.  At the time of writing the site is currently being marketed for sale. 

In addition to the Project Management role Hawksmoor were pleased to also be appointed as selling agents for all phases of this development, providing in total 800-900 dwellings to the market over a 10 year period.