A new medical centre, more green spaces and over 500 new homes for Soham

Cambridgeshire-based property development company, This Land, has sought planning permission to develop Soham Eastern Gateway, a new neighbourhood in Soham, comprised of 540 new private and affordable homes, all benefitting from air source heat pumps, a state of the art medical centre and a pre-school nursery.  

This Land’s proposed site is located on the eastern edge of Soham between the Qua Fen and East Fen Commons and the A142. The popular existing commons and allotments on the western boundary of the site will remain untouched and the proposed development will provide 11 new play and recreational areas.  There will be around 15 acres of public open spaces, including a new corridor between Qua Fen Common and East Fen Common, and more than 130 new trees. Furthermore, a new safe pedestrian route across the A142 will be created to provide access to acres of fenland and public rights of way.

The East Cambridgeshire Local Plan, which was adopted in 2015, outlines the District Council’s plan to improve the infrastructure of Soham, with new community facilities, homes and job opportunities. Soham Eastern Gateway is an allocated site under Policy SOH 3 within the East Cambridgeshire Local Plan 2015. The new development will support this plan, providing more than 130 jobs during construction works and a further 87 associated full-time jobs. 

Infrastructure for the town is central to the development plans, which include space allocated to a new neighbourhood centre which will house a new pre-school nursery and medical centre. The Staploe Medical Centre will offer residents a GP practice, double the size of the existing provision, with 27 consulting rooms. Access to the Medical Centre will be created via the A142, in addition to the existing Brewhouse Lane access, to mitigate congestion in Soham town centre.

Once This Land has enabled the new Medical Centre site with infrastructure and services, the construction of the new facility can commence. This brand new building is expected to achieve BREEAM Excellent Accreditation to meet high sustainability standard.

Commenting on the proposed plans, This Land CEO, David Meek, said: “Soham has already grown considerably and the District Council has outlined plans to ensure that residents of the town continue to enjoy living in a town that provides the facilities that the community deserves. Creating sustainable communities is our priority and we are looking forward to being able to provide Soham with even more green spaces, much-needed facilities and high-quality new homes.”

Louisa Wood, Chief Operating Officer, Mereside Medical, who has worked with This Land to prepare and submit the joint planning application for the new Staploe Medical Centre, said: “To continue to meet the needs of our existing patients and expand to provide a wider range of healthcare services, Mereside Medical has submitted joint planning permission with This Land for a new medical centre that is double the size of our existing practice. Soham Eastern Gateway is the only location in Soham that is central and large enough to accommodate the new state-of-the-art building and enable us to offer more face-to-face appointments, improved patient facilities and a wide range of much needed community services.”

To learn more about Soham Eastern Gateway, visit: https://this-land.co.uk/soham-eastern-gateway-development/