DESIGNS have been submitted to the council for 215 new homes at Blue Mountain Golf Club and Conference Centre in Binfield.

The submission comes as part of historically controversial plans to build 400 homes, a community facility, sports provision and a ‘Learning Village’ for more than 1,800 nursery, primary, secondary, post 16 and SEN students that were approved by Bracknell Forest Council in June 2016.

In 2014, councillors voted to lift a Section 52 agreement, signed in 1990, which had protected the site from development for 125 years.

Residents and organisations such as the Binfield Village Protection Society had fiercely objected to the plans as they feared it would spell the end of a green gap between Binfield and Bracknell.

Work on the Learning Village began in November 2016 and in February the council approved an application for occupation of 50 of the new homes.

The council has now received documents for the layout, appearance, landscaping and scale for the building of 215 homes following the demolition of the Park Farm property and Park Farm Cottages.

A report produced for the council described the development as “a comprehensive well designed mixed-use development that maintains a gap between Binfield and Bracknell.”

It continued: “The proposed housing in Phase 2 will range in size from 1 to 4 bedroom dwellings and would meet a range of community housing needs and provide a range of dwelling types, sizes and tenures in accordance with the requirements of the local area.”

More than 30 per cent of the houses will be ‘affordable’, totalling 65 cheaper dwellings.

However the majority of the affordable houses will be one or two bedroom apartments or houses which qualify as ‘affordable rented’ or ‘shared ownership’ dwellings.

The report considered the development’s impact on the local environment, and it read: “The landscaping strategy has focused on responding to the unique setting in which the development is situated, with care and consideration being given to each development parcel and its relationship with the landscape and wider setting.

“The proposals include the retention of existing trees and landscape features where possible and the addition of new trees and planting across the site. Areas of open space are spread

throughout the site, providing areas for trees and planting.”

Almost 600 car parking spaces will be delivered alongside the new dwellings, meaning each house has an average of 2.73 spaces.

The golf course at the site closed in April 2015.

The application will be approved or refused by Bracknell Forest Council in the coming months.