Deal will see hundreds of new homes built as historic school site sold

A deal has been struck which will see 450 homes and a new school built in Macclesfield.

Savills Manchester’s development team has completed the deal which includes the sale of three King’s School sites.

The sale of the sites is part of a wider plan to finance a brand new, state-of-the-art school in the town. It is set to open in May 2020 in time for the start of the 2020-2021 academic year.

The £60m development is most ambitious in the school’s 500-year history and will be one of the largest educational projects in the country.

It is designed to deliver some of the finest day school facilities to be found anywhere in the world on an 80-acre site on the fringes of Macclesfield and Prestbury.

Consisting of three sites to the east and north west of the town, deals have been agreed with four developers and institutions.

The Fence Avenue site has been sold to Homes England, a government agency with a remit to deliver new homes in areas of greatest need and to deliver a sustained improvement in affordability.

The Cumberland Street site will be divided between three developers. Hillcrest Homes, which specialises in high-quality and heritage developments, will seek permission to develop the historic part of the Cumberland Street site, home to the King’s School since 1855.

On the other side of Coare Street, McCarthy and Stone, the UK’s leading retirement housebuilder, will offer retirement and assisted living options.

Finally, Bellway Homes, one of the UK’s largest housebuilders, has acquired the sports and playing fields alongside Westminster Road for housing.

King’s Headmaster Dr Simon Hyde said: “We are extremely keen to ensure that our legacy is a positive one both for the school and Macclesfield in general.

“The development of a mix of sustainable housing close to the town centre will hopefully continue to bolster the attractiveness of Macclesfield as a place to live and support the many excellent new shops and businesses currently taking root.”

The Manchester team has been involved since the early stages providing planning, development strategic sales and project management advice to King’s School.

Communities Minister for the Northern Powerhouse, Jake Berry said: “Building new homes is a top priority. This encouraging development in Macclesfield is not only freeing up land to build 500 homes, but also establishes a new school for the community.

“Working with Homes England and local authorities, we’re determined to see more homes being built across towns and cities in the North.”

Ed Rooney, development director at Savills Manchester, says: “This is a major project for the north west and something which we are incredibly proud to have been involved in.

“The sale of the existing school premises now creates a significant pipeline for much needed  housing delivery in Macclesfield.

“Through this process, the school has also demonstrated an innovative way of financing a state of the art new education facility which will be retained in Macclesfield for generations to come.

“The completion of the land sales on behalf of the school is the culmination of a great deal of hard work from Savills and the school representatives and we are delighted with the deals achieved.”
Savills Manchester’s planning team secured the consent for the development of the new school and 450 new homes in April last year.

Jeremy Hinds adds: “We are very pleased to have been associated with this project which sees positive development of the existing school sites for much needed housing as well as the multi-million pound development of a wholly new school.

“The housing proposals will deliver much needed new homes in Macclesfield in sustainable locations close to the town centre and train station.”