Masterplan for Owenstown, South Lanarkshire

Challenge

Nearly 200 years ago, in response to economic crisis and social discontent, Robert Owen, founder of the Co-operative movement in Scotland, drew up a master plan for an ‘ideal community’. The Hometown Foundation is now seeking to turn this vision into reality through the development of Owenstown, a new community owned settlement in South Lanarkshire.

Solution

SLR's Place team were commissioned by the Hometown Foundation to masterplan this new settlement which will provide over 3,000 new homes and associated infrastructure, employment, education and leisure facilities. The Hometown Foundation is an established charity with the core aim of developing co-operative, self-governing sustainable communities. The site extends to some 810 hectares and is located to the south of Lanark and west of Biggar on the edge of the Douglas Valley in South Lanarkshire. The site is large enough to sustain a new settlement in its own right.

Both Biggar and Lanark are at an optimum size to sustain local services and community infrastructure. Significant new development within these towns would have a detrimental effect on their amenity and character. The proposal is to establish a new community that benefits its neighbours as well as the wider area.

Impact

The project was subject to extensive financial testing and conceptual visioning, and a submission for planning permission in principle was submitted to test Local Plan allocations.

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