Plans for a new market town near Plymouth have taken a major step forward following the formation of a group of housebuilders and the formal consolidation of the land into that consortium.

Planning permission was granted in November for the new 5,500-home Sherford community five miles to the east of Plymouth city centre, and the consortium has now taken control of the 1,200-acre site.

Sherford will now be constructed by Red Tree, the project founder, and a consortium of developers including Taylor Wimpey, Linden Homes and Bovis Homes.

The project has been supported with an investment of up to £32m from the Homes and Communities Agency to enable key infrastructure and community facilities to be delivered. The Prince’s Foundation for Building Community has created a design code to which future planning applications will be judged, helping to ensure the design aspirations for Sherford.

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Sherford spokesman, James Koe, said: ""A tremendous amount of work has gone into ensuring that Sherford is sustainable – this means that it must be delivered commercially, it must be a place that people want to live in and must not only survive but thrive. To achieve this Sherford has been designed around the best qualities of successful towns that have been in the south west of England for centuries, while ensuring that all the benefits of current know-how are applied to its delivery. We are now finally able to get onto the site and start realising the vision we have been planning for the past eight or more years."

Colin Molton, HCA Executive Director for the South and South West, said: "This vitally important development will make a huge difference in meeting the need for new and affordable homes in Devon and Plymouth and provide a major boost to the South West’s economy. After years of work by partners to get to this stage, this is going to be a big year for Sherford. I am looking forward to seeing work starting on site soon."

(CD/MH)