Uckfield Urban Extension
Uckfield Urban Extension Landscape Masterplan (Copyright © Scarp Landscape Architecture Ltd)
Aerial photograph of site
Wealden District Council’s Adopted Core Strategy identified land to the west of Uckfield for a mixed-use urban extension comprising around 1,000 new homes, education provision, over 1.2ha of employment space and various community facilities.
Scarp was appointed to provide landscape master planning and landscape design services to support an outline planning application and to prepare the LVIA chapter of the accompanying ES. Scarp was subsequently appointed, upon approval of the planning application, to prepare NBS landscape specifications and landscape cost estimates.
View of southern part of site
Existing landscape features on this steeply sloping greenfield site at Ridgewood Farm include ancient woodland, hedgerows, ponds and watercourses. The sensitive integration of the proposed built form into existing rural views and landscape character is achieved through conservation of the existing well-treed ridgeline, the sensitive distribution of open space in the more visually exposed parts of the site and creation of a well-defined, vegetated edge for the built development areas.
Cross-section through lake (Copyright © Scarp Landscape Architecture Ltd)
An extensive area of off-site Suitable Alternative Natural Green Space (SANG) is also provided to help mitigate against the potential for increased recreational pressure on the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area. The SANG Masterplan proposals reinstate traditional grazing or hay meadow management on the site fields and create an attractive and interesting area for informal recreation, including a 2.5km circular walk with frequent changes of view out towards the surrounding countryside as visitors move through the site.
Ridgewood Farm SANG Masterplan (Copyright © Scarp Landscape Architecture Ltd)