A groundbreaking £31m public-private deal is to be used to provide a vital piece of infrastructure in one of the four housing growth areas.
Under the deal, the ODPM will part-fund a bypass in the South Midlands growth area. The completion of the bypass will allow a 5000-home scheme to go ahead. Once these homes are under way, the developer will refund the government's money.

Bedford and Bedfordshire councils will work with regeneration quango English Partnerships to draft a legal framework for the pioneering method of financing development.

The project would be used to get the £31m three-mile Western Bypass scheme off the ground. It has been planned since 1987.

Building the bypass would open up the 448 ha West Bedford Strategic Development, which has the potential for 5000 homes. Without the bypass, the scheme could not go ahead.

The precise system for repaying the government's investment has yet to be decided, but it is likely to involve the developers – including landowners Wingfield and Bedfordia and the council – giving back some of their profits.

David Bailey, head of planning services at Bedford council, said: "Potentially, the government gets its money back, but takes the risk out of the equation for the private developers."

Source

Housing Today