Huge 1,200 home 'garden village' set to be built next to UK holiday hotspot

Plans have been unveiled to build a giant village with 1,200 homes next to a popular UK holiday spot. The proposals across the 230 hectares site hope to tackle the ongoing housing crisis with a focus on family housing and social infrastructure.

The Canford Garden Village will be located near Wimborne in Dorset. The charming market town is known for its 1300-year-old Saxon church, the Minster, with a chained library and historical tombs. Wimborne is also home to a number of independent shops, as well as thriving bars and restaurants. Last year, it was voted one of the best places to live in the UK, with visitors describing it as "pretty" and "delightful."

As reported by The Sun, W.H. White has submitted the plans to Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole Council (BCP). The site, which will include 1,200 new homes, hopes to create a village that fits within the local landscape.

It has been reported that 40% of the properties will be affordable homes, with 600 dedicated to first-time buyers, social rent, and shared ownership schemes. There will also be a care home, a community hub, flexible workspaces and community facilities, as well as education and healthcare provision.

The site will be built on land that used to be a quarry and a golf course. Current farmland has also been earmarked to be turned into 90 hectares of publicly available green space.

While stakeholders, including Dorset Chamber and Dorset Local Enterprise Partnership, say the development has economic benefits, there is some opposition to the proposals. Critics are concerned about traffic congestion and the impact on existing facilities.

Ward councillor for Bearwood and Merley, Richard Burton, said: "We've had a lot of development in Bearwood and therefore I know my residents will be very worried about this because of the impact it could have."

He added: "From a political point of view, I do totally understand that we need more affordable housing in BCP, but just choosing the easiest places to build, which is currently Green Belt, isn't the way forward and it's not sustainable."

A spokesperson for W.H. White said: "The current shortfall in housing supply, combined with well-documented viability challenges of delivering homes on urban land, has prompted renewed interest in strategic and deliverable opportunities such as at Canford Village."

BCP Council previously said it would initiate a new call for potential development sites in a bid to deliver new homes. Cllr Millie Earl, leader of BCP Council, said: "It is important that we balance our future development priorities whilst protecting the beautiful area that we live in and the precious natural environment we are so lucky to have."