Sandwell picks Keepmoat for 600-home Friar Park
One of the largest brownfield sites in the West Midlands will be taken forward by the developer on behalf of the local authority and the West Midlands Combined Authority.
Billed as an urban village, the selection process for Friar Park began in January 2024, culminating in Sandwell Council’s cabinet rubber-stamping Keepmoat’s selection.
The scheme is a joint project between the council and WMCA, who between them own the land that makes up the masterplan area. At least 25% of homes developed here will be classed as affordable.
Previously, the site housed a waste treatment plant, a foundry and hospital, with no new development taking place for more than 40 years due to the complexity of land assembly and remediation.
Cllr Peter Hughes, Sandwell’s cabinet member for regeneration and infrastructure, said: “It’s great to see another step forward in our ambitious plans to regenerate Sandwell and to be able to offer more jobs, homes, green space and infrastructure to our residents.
“This project will be genuinely collaborative between the WMCA, Keepmoat, the Council and local residents. We will work hard to ensure that we deliver a site which is a real asset to the Borough and something which improves quality of life.”
Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands and chair of the WMCA, said: “I’m pleased to see more progress on this project.
“This is not an easy site to bring forward, but when I met with the Environment Agency, they assured me they are treating our land clean-up plans as a top priority now. That matters because thousands of families need a safe, warm home and this site can deliver 600 of them.
“The appointment of Keepmoat is a real step forward. They can now start designing a new community that will help meet our housing needs, create jobs and support the regeneration set out in my Growth Plan.”
Keepmoat is a strategic partner of the combined authority, with the two organisations signing an agreement in 2023 under which Keepmoat committed to building 4,000 additional homes in the West Midlands.
The firm’s divisional chair Charlotte Goode described the project as a “flagship” scheme, adding: “We’re thrilled to be working collaboratively with the WMCA and Sandwell Council to unlock this complex brownfield site.
“At Keepmoat, we’re committed to transforming lives and creating a thriving new community in Wednesbury is an exciting project to deliver much-needed high quality housing for local people.
“With almost 70% of our current developments being delivered on brownfield land, the plans to breathe new life into Friar Park will champion affordability, accessibility, green space and connectivity.”
The first phase of work on Friar Park Urban Village will be to treat the land to address historic contamination issues, with a planning application expected soon.
