Plans to build hundreds of houses between Bradford on Avon and Trowbridge
Developers wants to build on a thirty-one hectare site near Widbrook Wood nature reserve
Plans to build more than 200 houses and a care home on farmland between Bradford on Avon and Trowbridge have been revealed.
Land investor Waddeton Park Ltd wants to build the homes – 50 per cent of which will be designated ‘affordable’ – and a 72-bed care home at on a 31 hectare site at Trowbridge Road, east of Bradford on Avon and between the River Avon and the Kennet & Avon Canal.
The Avon Valley site is also adjacent to Wiltshire Wildlife Trust’s 16-hectare Widbrook Wood nature reserve, with the site entrance adjacent to the 200-year-old Grade II listed Widbrook Bridge over the Kennet & Avon Canal.
The application also includes the provision of a community sports pitch, mobility hub, 12-hectare country park, and other public open space including a community orchard, play areas, and allotments.
The site is currently agricultural land with a single-storey hut used by Bradford on Avon Sailing Club for boat storage.
The site is 1.45km from Bradford on Avon railway station – which provides direct services to Bath Spa, Bristol Temple Meads, Westbury, and Salisbury – 1.3km from the nearest primary school, and 2km from St Laurence secondary school.
To the northwest is a former golf club, which ceased operation in 2007 and has since been the subject of interest for residential development.
An application for 194 houses was refused in 2008, with a similar application being withdrawn in 2009.
Waddeton Park says it has been discussing its proposals with Bradford on Avon Town Council since 2023. It was during these meeting that town councillors raised the lack of facilities in the town, including sports pitches, and the lack of affordable housing.
The land investor recently sold an 11-acre site at Saltersford Lane, Chippenham to Backhouse with planning permission for 70 homes, and also has 47 acres at Amesbury, 35 acres at Woodrow Road, Melksham, 30 acres at Shaw near Melksham, and 30 acres at Southwick Court, Trowbridge in the planning pipeline.
Public consultation runs until June 26. Anyone wishing to comment on the proposal, or see the plans in full, should visit https://development.wiltshire.gov.uk/pr/s/ using the reference code PL/2026/02943