Nottinghamshire County Council is being asked to approve more than £1.2m of additional capital funding to progress the planning, development and marketing of its land at Gamston, as part of wider proposals for a major urban extension of more than 4,000 homes.
A report going to the council’s Cabinet on 16 July seeks approval for an in-year variation to the capital programme of £1,219,787 for work on land east of Gamston and north of Tollerton, together with permission to begin preparing the council-owned site for marketing on the open market.
The council owns around 122 acres of land east of Gamston, forming part of the wider Gamston Sustainable Urban Extension. The wider allocation, which also includes land being promoted by Taylor Wimpey/Barwood and Vistry Homes Limited, has long been identified for large-scale development. It was allocated in Rushcliffe Borough Council’s Core Strategy in 2014 for 4,000 homes, community facilities and employment provision, and has since been included in a Supplementary Planning Document approved by Rushcliffe Borough Council.
The report says the council’s land would be developed as part of the wider scheme, which is expected to include more than 4,000 homes, employment land, education, community and health facilities, transport improvements, green infrastructure and biodiversity enhancements.
Two outline planning applications have already been submitted by other landowners. Taylor Wimpey/Barwood submitted an outline application in December 2020 for 2,250 homes and other uses on land in its control, while Vistry Homes Limited submitted an outline application in March 2024 for 1,600 homes, including 400 in detail. Both applications remain to be determined by Rushcliffe Borough Council.
Rushcliffe Borough Council and Nottinghamshire County Council applications should be considered together, the report says, it warns that, if the council does not bring forward its land alongside the other landowners, there is a risk of piecemeal development, infrastructure deficiencies and a reduction in the value of the council’s land.
The funding now requested would support work including progression towards an outline planning application, contamination, transport and infrastructure assessments, landowner equalisation negotiations, site-wide evidence work including a transport strategy, preparatory disposal work and the process of bringing the site to market.
The report says the council expects to submit a planning application in September 2026. Formal marketing of the site is expected to begin after the planning application has been determined, which the report currently anticipates in May 2027. The marketing process is expected to end in October 2027, with a capital receipt anticipated during the 2027/28 financial year, subject to a successful marketing campaign and later approval of any sale terms.
The report makes clear that approval to begin marketing the site would not amount to approval to sell it. Any proposed disposal would require a separate report and approval before any transaction could be completed.
The wider Gamston masterplan includes a substantial package of infrastructure linked to the development. The report refers to more than £100m for education provision, including a five-form entry secondary school with a 200-place sixth form and SEND block, two two-form entry primary schools, SEND provision and nurseries.
It also refers to more than £210m of infrastructure provision and improvements, including contributions towards National Highways schemes on the A52 and A606 corridors. These include the A52/A453 Silverdale Junction, A52/A60 Nottingham Knight Junction, A52/A606 Wheatcroft Junction, A606/Tollerton Lane/Main Road junctions and the A52/A5011 Gamston Junction.
Other proposed elements include an active travel bridge over the A52, off-site walking and cycling improvements, connections towards Gamston and West Bridgford, a potential park and ride scheme, public open space, allotments, outdoor sports pitches, healthcare facilities, a community hub, biodiversity net gain areas, enhancements to the Grantham Canal and landscape buffers between Gamston, Tollerton and Bassingfield.
The report also says the development could include more than 1,300 affordable homes and 12.31 hectares of employment land, which it says may bring up to 1,500 new jobs into the area.
The latest report follows an earlier first tranche of £375,000, approved in February 2026, to move the Gamston site through the pre-planning process. The new report seeks approval for a final funding allocation of £1,937,865, bringing total project funding to £2,312,865.
Of that total, £1,219,787 would require an increase to the capital programme, while £718,078 would be funded from the future capital receipt, based on the CIPFA legislative framework four per cent cap. The report says the capital funding request is proposed to be funded from borrowing.
The report says the latest costs are £548,000 higher than the £1,764,865 originally approved by the Capital and Asset Management Group on 4 June 2026. It says the increase reflects the move from initial indicative estimates to developed costings, as well as the inclusion of agency and disposal fees that had not previously been included.
The council says most of the remaining costs, £1,519,787, are expected to be incurred in the current 2026/27 financial year. A further £418,078, mainly linked to professional fees, is expected to be payable after the successful marketing and disposal of the site, subject to approval, in 2027/28 or shortly afterwards.
The report identifies a number of risks, including changes in land values before disposal, rising enabling costs, unforeseen site constraints, the need to negotiate an equalisation agreement between landowners and the need for effective collaboration between the parties involved.
It also notes the implications of Local Government Reorganisation in Nottinghamshire. The report says strategic land assets such as the Gamston site may transfer to a successor authority or form part of transitional arrangements. It says progressing the planning, promotion and marketing of the site now would put the council, or any successor authority, in a stronger position by reducing risk and maximising potential land value.
Cabinet is being asked to approve marketing the council’s land at Gamston on the open market to achieve a capital receipt, approve the £1,219,787 capital programme variation, note that a further report will be required to approve any disposal terms.
