£75 million funding agreement with Homes England given seal of approval

Cabinet has agreed to sign the Grant Determination Agreement with Homes England, the government's housing agency, subject to conditions, to secure £75 million of Housing Infrastructure Funding.

This decision, made on 13 October 2020, ensures funding is available to contribute towards the cost of delivering the strategic infrastructure in and around Chippenham to support the potential longer-term growth of the area.

The infrastructure improvements include the creation of a new relief road to the east and south of Chippenham, linking the A350 at the northern and southern ends of the town, as well as specific improvement to J17 on the M4.

Philip Whitehead, Leader of Wiltshire Council, said: "Entering into the funding agreement with Homes England is an important step forward in the Future Chippenham project. It means we will be able to drawdown significant government funding for infrastructure works should planning be granted for development to proceed.

"We are progressing to the next stages of the Future Chippenham proposals which includes a public consultation on the road route options and the emerging Masterplan early January 2021. This is a long-term project and we still have a long way to go."

The HIF bid identified the opportunity to provide 7,500 homes at Chippenham. The level of growth at the town to 2036 including where new homes could be allocated is being considered through the separate Wiltshire Local Plan review process. Any new housing allocations will be examined by an independent Inspector. Consultation on the Local Plan will be carried out early in the new year.