Brooklands Square

Showing placemaking at its best, Brooklands is a mixed- tenure scheme in Milton Keynes that will provide a total of 2,500 homes all supported by a raft of facilities and amenities, including schools, shops and leisure facilities as well as green spaces that emphasise biodiversity and environmental sustainability. Brooklands Square is the heart of the Brooklands development and due to be completed by September 2020. Designed with longevity in mind, this bustling mixed- use centre combines new homes, infrastructure and amenities that will allow the local community to thrive.

There will be a total of 122 new homes, including one, two and three- bedroom contemporary apartments and family homes ensuring there is something to suit everyone’s lifestyle. To date, 91 per cent of homes have been completed. These homes are complemented by a new health centre and secondary school which both opened in 2018, new shops, restaurants, leisure facilities and a community centre. Construction of a new nursery– Caring Kindergarten – is also planned. Shops, restaurants and new homes are carefully grouped around a new and accessible public square providing a focal point for the local community and helping to give the wider Brooklands development a strong identity. This space is owned by Places for People for long- term custodianship and plays host to a local farmer’s market and public events attracting residents and visitors alike.

Describe this place and the point it has reached in its development, as well as when it is expected to complete?

Showing placemaking at its best, Brooklands is a mixed-tenure scheme in Milton Keynes that will provide a total of 2,500 homes all supported by a raft of facilities and amenities, including schools, shops and leisure facilities as well as green spaces that emphasise biodiversity and environmental sustainability.

Brooklands Square is the heart of the Brooklands development and due to be completed by September 2020. Designed with longevity in mind, this bustling mixed-use centre combines new homes, infrastructure and amenities that will allow the local community to thrive.

There will be a total of 122 new homes, including one, two and three- bedroom contemporary apartments and family homes ensuring there is something to suit everyone’s lifestyle. To date, 91 per cent of homes have been completed. These homes are complemented by a new health centre and secondary school which both opened in 2018, new shops, restaurants, leisure facilities and a community centre. Construction of a new nursery– Caring Kindergarten – is also planned.

Shops, restaurants and new homes are carefully grouped around a new and accessible public square providing a focal point for the local community and helping to give the wider Brooklands development a strong identity. This space is owned by Places for People for long-term custodianship and plays host to a local farmer’s market and public events attracting residents and visitors alike.

Why should this place be recognised with a Pineapple Award? How has it made a promising start on the journey to completion?

Brooklands Square is the latest chapter in the story of Brooklands – an infrastructure-led scheme demonstrating placemaking on a significant scale. Its construction is paving the way for a place where people can live, work, dine, socialise, and be part of a thriving community. Places for People’s infrastructure-first approach means that Brooklands Square has been carefully designed and laid out, ensuring a highly sustainable and connected place.

Construction began in 2017 which saw the medical centre, secondary school and community centre built first and there has been a steady stream of strong interest from new retailers and leisure providers. In 2019, a new Sainsbury’s Local store opened in Brooklands Square, ideally situated close to the secondary school, medical centre and community centre. Alongside the 17 new jobs it has brought to the area, the new store is playing an active role in the local community, supporting local charities.

A 6,500 sq ft gym has been let to Energie Fitness Limited and is in the process of being fitted out. Costa Coffee, a hairdresser and a barber shop are all open to the local community and an estate agency is also fitting out new premises. Discussions are well underway to let the remaining units, with strong interest from Domino’s Pizza and a large independent Indian restaurant. As well as providing jobs for local people, the abundance of new amenities has already impacted positively on the area’s economy.

How are you responding to changes in changing demographics, shifting policy, transport habits and the climate crisis since winning planning and as the project unfolds?

 Places for People has prioritised providing homes for residents at all stages of life to ensure a mix of tenants and a diverse community. These include homes available for affordable rent, shared ownership, reduced cost housing and low cost housing. The family homes have been designed to suit lots of different people so include large terraced houses, large semi[1]detached houses and smaller mews style houses. Prioritising the needs of family occupants was one of the principle drivers in developing these housing typologies. The resulting flexible family accommodation sees kitchen and dining spaces at ground floor provide a ‘family space’ with easy access to the garden, while living spaces at first floor are quieter and more relaxed as are separated from the street and garden.

Outside, enhanced connectivity has been developed throughout the community, with priority given to pedestrians. The streets have been designed to feel like places where children can play, with good surveillance from the houses and the car subservient to pedestrians. Enabling the local community and businesses to prosper, The Fibre to the Home (FTTH) network provides superior voice, ultra-fast broadband and TV services. To ensure more efficient and environmentally-friendly local deliveries, self-driving delivery robots can carry items such as parcels and groceries within a four mile radius. Once ordered the robots’ entire journey and location can be monitored on a smartphone.