BACKGROUND

The Site

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The site extends to approximately 23.3 hectares and is located to the east of Barrow, adjoining the existing urban area. It comprises four main field parcels which are bound by hedgerows.

The site is bound by Leece Lane to the south, the existing residential neighbourhood of Holbeck to the west and agricultural fields to the north and east.

The site is considered to be an appropriate location for residential development. As part of a future planning application submission, a range of technical reports are currently being prepared. The key site characteristics are included below:

The site is not subject to any national or local landscape designations.

Part of the site is allocated for residential development, which is discussed herein.

The site is located within Flood Risk Zone 1, where the risk of flooding is at its lowest.

There are no public rights of way or any other environmental or heritage designations affecting the site.

Site Sustainability

The site lies in a sustainable and accessible location in relation to the services and facilities in Barrow.

Barrow town centre is 2.8 km west of the site and provides a range of amenities such as supermarkets, shops, restaurants, public houses, and salons. It can be reached by bus, via the number 4 service from the Leece Lane/ Stonedyke Lane bus stop, within 300m of the site entrance, which runs half hourly at peak times. Driving from the site to the Town Centre takes approximately 8 minutes.

There are several local facilities within walking distance in the Holbeck / Roose neighbourhood, including two primary schools (Roose and Yarlside), a convenience store, public houses and food outlets, Roose Train Station and a Tesco supermarket; all within 1.5km.

The nearest secondary school is Furness Academy which is 2.8km west of the site on the edge of Barrow Town which is accessible by bus.

There are several sports grounds and playing fields, including Holbeck Park Avenue Playground and Furness Cavs Juniors Football Pitch.

Given the above, the site represents a sustainable location for residential development, providing access to a range of everyday services and public transport connectivity for future residents.

Planning Context

The south western part of the site was allocated for residential development within the Barrow Borough Local Plan, adopted June 2019, which set out a vision, and policies to support development in the Borough up to 2031.

The site was identified as site REC26 under Policy H3, measuring 6.43 Ha with an indicative yield of 135 dwellings, based on housing needs at the time.

Holker Group subsequently secured planning permission for 58 homes on the southern part of the allocation in May 2026 (Ref: 2022/0381), through their housebuilding arm, Holbeck Homes, leaving 77 homes to be delivered within the remainder.

In April 2023, Barrow borough became part of the wider unitary authority area of Westmorland and Furness Council (along with the former borough areas of South Lakeland and Eden) and began work on a new Local Plan for the enlarged unitary area, albeit with the adopted plans from Barrow and the other legacy boroughs in place until the new plan is adopted.

This was followed by significant changes to national planning policy in December 2024, and more recently in August 2026, which have seen Westmorland and Furness Council’s housing requirements increasing significantly, from 503 homes per year within the adopted plans to 1,322 homes per year (an increase of 163%). Accordingly, the emerging Westmorland Local Plan is expecting an overall target of approximately 26,000 new homes by 2045.

This has coincided with a wider government commitment to significant investment and jobs growth at BAE’s Barrow Shipyard, linked to the new AUKUS submarine deal (between UK, Australia and US) signed in 2023, with up to 7,500 new jobs expected over the next 15 years, which is well above what was accounted for in previous Local Plans.

This projected growth will need to be supported by new, high-quality housing, focused around Barrow itself, with a mix of tenures and house types to cater for the full range of new jobs from apprentices to executives, a matter with the Council is currently assessing in dialogue with BAE and other key stakeholders.

We are therefore looking to submit an outline planning application to the Council to enable the remainder of this allocated site to come forward, alongside additional land to the north and east, to help meet this massively increased need, with the detailed housing mix to be confirmed at the later Reserved Matters stage once the Council’s evidence has progressed.

Site allocation plan

Extract of approved layout