Sale of brownfield site will enhance housing provision for science park community
The UK Atomic Energy Authority and global property group Goodman have completed the sale of Chilton Field, next to the Harwell Oxford Campus.
The UK Atomic Energy Authority and global property group Goodman have completed the sale of Chilton Field, a 14.9 hectare brownfield site adjacent to the Harwell Oxford Campus, to David Wilson Homes (part of the Barratt Group).
Harwell Oxford is being developed as a world-leading centre for science, technology and business, as part of a joint venture between Goodman, the UK Atomic Energy Authority and the Science and Technology Facilities Council. With planning consent for 275 new homes, significant sports facilities and green open spaces, the brownfield Chilton Field redevelopment will enhance the provision of local housing for the community.
The sale was made possible following a successful land remediation project carried out by the UK Atomic Energy Authority, which was completed in 2002. The land had historically been used as a waste storage area during Harwell’s days as a wartime RAF airfield and post-war nuclear research centre.
Eric Hollis, Chief Finance Officer of the UK Atomic Energy Authority, said:
This deal demonstrates our commitment to enhancing the Harwell Oxford campus. We are pleased that our restoration of the land at Chilton Field has provided an ideal site for much-needed new housing.
Dr Sally Ann Forsyth, Director of Goodman Science Parks, said:
Whilst Harwell Oxford is predominantly a strategic employment site, combining it with residential development nearby will enhance its vibrancy and make it a more sustainable place for people to work and live. The vision for Harwell Oxford extends far beyond the provision of scientific facilities, services and workspace accommodation. It is to enhance a community of like-minded individuals working together without limits in one of the biggest specialist communities of its kind anywhere in the UK.
Based in the heart of ‘Science Vale UK’, an area of economic growth in Oxfordshire, approximately 4,500 people are currently employed in 150 organisations at Harwell Oxford. Future investment at Harwell Oxford will encompass fundamental scientific research and the development of property, facilities and local infrastructure, creating up to 5,000 high value knowledge-based jobs.
As development partner, Goodman managed the sale on behalf of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority. Property agents Strutt & Parker and Kemp & Kemp Property Consultants acted for Goodman.
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For more information please contact:
Nick Holloway
United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority Media Manager
01235 466232
Email: nick.holloway@ccfe.ac.uk
Notes to Editors
UK Atomic Energy Authority
The UK Atomic Energy Authority was created by the Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954 to oversee the nation’s nuclear research programme. The Authority operated the Harwell research site and then oversaw the decommissioning of its nuclear facilities until 2009, when Research Sites Restoration Limited assumed this responsibility on behalf of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. Today, the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority carries out fusion research in the UK on behalf of Government at Culham Science Centre. In addition, it continues to manage the records service for the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority at Harwell, and owns land at both the Harwell and Culham sites, where thriving science parks have been set up.
More information at www.uk-atomic-energy.org.uk
About Goodman Group (ASX: GMG)
Goodman Group is an integrated property group with operations throughout Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Europe and the United Kingdom. Goodman Group, comprised of the stapled entities Goodman Limited and Goodman Industrial Trust, is the largest industrial property group listed on the Australian Securities Exchange and one of the largest listed industrial property groups globally.
Goodman’s global property expertise, integrated own+develop+manage customer service offering and significant fund management platform ensures it creates innovative property solutions that meet the individual requirements of its customers, whilst seeking to deliver attractive long-term returns for investors. In Europe, Goodman has offices in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Italy, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia.
Please visit:
www.goodmanlogistics.co.uk www.goodman.com
Contacts
Joanna Spinks T: 020 7269 9348 Email: jo.spinks@fd.com
Richard Stocks T: 020 7269 9348 Email: richard.stocks@fd.com
Harwell Oxford
Harwell Oxford is being developed as a world-class centre for science, technology and innovation. More information at www.harwelloxford.com
Chilton Field land remediation project
The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority’s two-year remediation of the land at Chilton Field (2000-2002) returned the area to a safe and clean condition, landscaped for future use. It was the biggest and most complex clean-up project of its kind in the UK and won a commendation award in the RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) Awards in May 2004. The land was owned by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority and managed under a Residential Land Sale Management Agreement dated 13 August 2008 by The Harwell Science and Innovation Campus Limited Partnership. Outline planning consent for the development of 275 residential dwellings was secured in November 2009.