The plans have swathes of objections since being submitted in 2022 and in late 2024 a week-long public inquiry thrashed out concerns over it This website uses 'cookies' to give you the best Using this website means you are Ok with this You can change which cookies are set at any time - and find out more about them - by following this link<\/a> motors and property from the Maidenhead Advertiser A plan for 230 homes in Twyford has been approved by a planning inspector who has scrutinised Wokingham Borough Council’s ‘restrictive’ development rules David Wilson Homes Southern Ltd was refused permission for the homes planned on land by A4 New Bath Road and near the A4/A321 roundabout Wokingham council said the mix of one-bed apartments and up to four-bed family homes would be ‘inappropriate unplanned development’ The council criticised a lack of affordable housing; problems ensuring job opportunities for people living at the site; and issues with ‘sustainable travel’ It claimed approving the 230 homes could create an ‘enclave of development’ due to a lack of walking and cycling links to Twyford “This physical disconnection would isolate future residents from accessing community facilities and reduce opportunities for social interaction,” the council’s decision notice said David Wilson Homes Southern Ltd challenged the council’s decision through the Planning Inspectorate – a government agency that oversees planning appeals The developer said Wokingham council was ‘constraining the growth of Twyford’ and its actions ‘potentially create a significant risk to the ongoing viability of the settlement’ It said the council’s development plan had prioritised new housing builds in the county’s south which had contributed to a 61 per cent house price increase in Twyford over the last 10 years Twyford railway station’s Elizabeth line connection showed the site had good access to employment that the council had ‘failed in any way’ to consider “The council has not justified its dismissal of this clear opportunity and it must revisit its justification for continuing to constrain the growth of Twyford,” the developer’s statement of case on the appeal said the planning inspector has overruled Wokingham Borough Council and given the 230 homes the go-ahead The site’s links to ‘excellent’ train and bus services showed it was an ‘appropriate sustainable location for residential development Existing walking and cycling routes near the development would be enhanced during construction and further enhanced by the Bridge Farm development Bridge Farm is a near 200 home scheme by developer Croudace being built on the southern side of A4 New Bath Road in Twyford The inspector said David Wilson Homes’ plan was in conflict with Wokingham council’s local plan but the appeal presumed ‘in favour of sustainable development’ these [council] policies present a more restrictive approach to development outside of defined development limits than the [national building policy] framework,” the inspector said ‘there would be no adverse impacts which would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits of granting planning permission’ The development was approved along with a string of 45 conditions including ensuring improved water efficiency at each home; and that ‘odour mitigation measures’ be agreed with Thames Water Planning Voters have had their say in local council elections across Buckinghamshire Construction workers did make a mistake when building a new £1.3million roundabout the RBWM cabinet member for highways has said The Conservatives lost a long-held majority at Buckinghamshire Council and fell one seat short of the 49 needed - but how did the votes fall in the county's south A murder investigation has been launched in Slough after a 46-year-old man was killed in an attack © Copyright 2024 Baylis Community Media CIC All right reserved XFASTINDEX Twyford Abbey is a derelict grade II-listed manor house in Ealing that is on Historic England’s ‘at risk’ register the development arm of Clarion Housing Group is working with Redington Capital to restore the Twyford Abbey building (never actually an abbey) after acquiring the site in 2023 JJ Rhatigan will be responsible for constructing 296 homes across five-storey blocks in the abbey grounds Its appointment follows the completion of initial groundworks The project will also restore a Grade II-listed walled garden for community use while the main building will also undergo restoration in partnership with Picture Property Developments to create 30 apartments Clarion Housing Group chief development officer Richard Cook said that Clarion had worked with JJ Rhatigan before and had been impressed by “their strong focus on safety” UK managing director at JJ Rhatigan said: "This project offers a unique opportunity to blend contemporary housing solutions with the careful restoration of an important heritage site." with the first homes expected to be completed by 2027 Got a story? Email news@theconstructionindex.co.uk 15 hours Following a recent expansion into North America, Murphy Group has now entered Australia. 3 days A Devon housing development has emerged as the centre of a web of corruption. 15 hours Controversial government plans to allow developers to pay into a central nature levy to offset local environmental harms are generating increasing opposition. 3 days Dolphin Living has appointed The Hill Group to deliver the redevelopment of the New Era housing estate in Hackney. 3 days Tilbury Douglas continues to progress after collapse of parent company 3 days John Sisk & Son has started work on a £65m refurbishment of Haringey Civic Centre in London. © 2025 The Construction Index [Company No ' + response[i].created_nice + ' ' + response[i].description + ' Wokingham council turned down these plans in June over myriad issues - but even then concerns were raised that the council might not be able to hold up its argument at an appeal Next week will see the beginning of a full planning inquiry into a sweeping plan for 230 homes in Twyford These plans were rejected by a Wokingham council committee in June – and the applicant the proposals are for a 16-hectare patch of land excluding Loddon Park Farm in the middle This application fetched many objection letters and instilled a great ‘strength of feeling’ from residents councillors noted at the June planning committee One of the major issues was the possibility of flooding in the area as well as concerns over the eroding of a valued buffer between Twyford and neighbouring villages Something that may work in the developer’s favour is that Wokingham borough cannot demonstrate a five-year housing land supply it has not shown a clear a plan for where houses will be built in the next five years This is a problem because local authorities are expected by central Government to reach certain housing targets and allocate land in their local plans to accommodate this for any planning appeals against Wokingham council’s decisions the inspector is likely to look more favourably on proposed housing developments demonstrable harm that outweighs the strengths of the scheme the council’s rejection could be overturned Though councillors at the June committee mainly concluded that the harm did outweigh the benefits some did see a storm cloud brewing on the horizon Winnersh) raised concerns over the possibility of an appeal – whereby WBC wouldn’t be able to defend its position if it refused these homes If the developers are able to successfully argue that Wokingham’s decision was unreasonable they could apply to make the council to pay for their appeal costs Cllr Shepherd-DuBey noted central Government’s drive to build housing – a drive that has only increased since the General Election which happened a month after the committee meeting took place The new Labour Government has made it clear that it has an agenda to get houses built in Britain However, there is no indication that Deputy PM Angela Rayner is stepping in personally to decide this Twyford application, as she is doing elsewhere for some large projects, like Holyport Studios. Whether an appeal goes to a full planning inquiry depends on the case the appellant felt an inquiry was the most appropriate course The planning inquiry begins on November 26 and could be sitting for several days Wokingham council is likely to call one witness and the appellant three – possibly up to six dependent upon scope of evidence received or matters not agreed There are a whopping 688 documents relating to this case. See them by entering reference number 223455 into Wokingham’s online planning portal at planning.wokingham.gov.uk/FastWebPL Follow me on Twitter The British Transport Police has confirmed a person died at Twyford Railway Station on Saturday evening Officers were called to the station at 6.30pm following reports of a casualty on the tracks.  Paramedics also attended but the person was pronounced dead at the scene A British Transport Police spokesperson said the incident is not being treated as suspicious Where I Live Maidenhead and Twyford have a ‘very limited’ GWR service this morning due to a defective track between Paddington and Reading Maidenhead and Twyford have a ‘very limited’ GWR service this morning due to a defective track between Paddington and Reading The defect in the Slough area has caused all trains on the fast line from London towards Reading to stop and wait for an inspection to take place Great Western Railway has had to reduce the number of trains it operates through the affected area Trains must run at reduced speed on some lines Trains running to and from Reading and Paddington will be cancelled Any GWR service continuing to serve these stations are likely to be ‘very busy.’ Disruption is expected until the end of the day Customers travelling to and from Maidenhead Twyford and Slough are encouraged to use Elizabeth Line services on which GWR tickets will be accepted The Elizabeth line is conveying passengers between Reading and London Paddington via Maidenhead and Slough in both directions until further notice Arrangements have been made for GWR rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys Traffic and Travel Travel disruption is expected until the end of the day between Reading and London Paddington after emergency services were called to an incident in Twyford Great Western Railway said emergency services are currently at the scene and trains will not be stopping at Twyford Railway Station for the time being The rail operator said some lines have now re-opened But disruption is still expected until the end of today Trains leaving London Paddington are likely to be very busy South Western Railway and London Underground are conveying passengers via any reasonable route until further notice CrossCountry and Elizabeth line are accepting passengers with GWR tickets until further notice Appeals and information the development division of housing association giant Clarion Housing Group has awarded a £84m contract to construction firm JJ Rhatigan for the building of new homes at Twyford Abbey in Ealing The agreement will see JJ Rhatigan build 296 new homes of which Clarion said 50% will be affordable According to Clarion initial groundworks have been completed on the site with full-scale construction set to start in March First homes are expected to be completed by 2027 the Twyford Abbey building itself will be restored in partnership with Picture Property Developments which will see it offer 30 new homes chief development officer at Clarion Housing Group “We are pleased to appoint JJ Rhatigan as the principal contractor for this landmark development We have successfully worked with them on previous projects and their strong focus on safety and community investment aligns with our vision for the Twyford Abbey site.” SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE TO THE EALING.NEWS NEWSLETTER EALING.NEWS is the voice of our 7 towns which provides news sign up to our newsletter email us: news@ealing.news call us: 07488 352 974 Follow us on X: @_EalingNews © 2022 - 2025 EALING.NEWS All rights reserved | Part of Your Local News Network | Contact Us We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings we will not be able to save your preferences This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again More information about our Cookie Policy A man has been charged over a robbery in the car park of Twyford Waitrose where a woman was knocked to the floor and had her handbag stolen A man has been charged over a robbery in the car park of Waitrose in Twyford where a woman was knocked to the floor as a thief tried to steal her handbag.  David Wright was charged with one count of robbery and one count of possession of a bladed article in public at Reading Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday (December 11) was also charged with three counts of vehicle interference His charges relate to a robbery in the car park of Waitrose’s Twyford branch in London Road at around 1.40pm on Monday (December 9) A woman was knocked to the floor by a man who used a pair of scissors to cut her handbag and pry it away Wright has been released on conditional bail and is set to appear at Reading Crown Court on January 14 in the New Year Crime, courts and inquests