Over the past few months, we’ve been working with local organisations (including the Council, the Canterbury Society, sports clubs and schools), and this meeting felt like a natural continuation of that — open, thoughtful and full of energy.
A Developer’s Approach (but not as you know it)
We know many people arrived – understandably – feeling a little sceptical. We find that happens a lot when they are about to meet a ‘developer’! We hope we were able to explain why being a ‘Master Developer’ means we approach things differently. For us, this process is about understanding the place and its existing community, setting high standards, holding housebuilders to account, ensuring long-term quality and building new, vibrant communities.
Our approach isn’t about talking at people. It’s about listening — to your questions, concerns, ideas, and insights.
Key Questions from the Day
There was a fantastic range of questions and discussions throughout the afternoon. Here are some of the main topics that came up:
- Boundary treatments – what they’ll look like and how they’ll respect existing surroundings
- Timelines – including when parks and public spaces will be delivered
- Engineering and wastewater – how we’re approaching challenges around infrastructure and sustainable systems – this has inspired an entire event based around engineering. This will be led by Nick Bromell, our Head of Delivery, on Tuesday 23rd September.
- Cars, buses and transport – Canterbury West won't be car-led; it will be as walking and cycling friendly as possible. We also discussed how we’ll contribute to new bus services, dedicated bus lanes and broader transport improvements
- Affordable housing – it was great to hear how many of you are interested in this part of our plans. There is an article setting out our approach in more detail here: Let’s Think Differently About Affordable Housing - GummerLeathes. Our next coffee session, on May 27th, will include a talk on this subject.
- Design and build quality – and how we’ll ensure standards are met across the entire development
Our updates:
Four members of our team spoke about their work and its impact on South Canterbury.
Paul Cutler, our Head of Design, explained how our context study shapes the design code. This is all about seamlessly integrating South Canterbury into the local landscape and character. The code then sets strict parameters for the housebuilders we work with.
Georgia Billings, our Head of Sustainability, updated the group on the latest national carbon goals, before sharing our latest framework aimed at pushing construction towards genuine net-zero goals. She highlighted the technologies we’re using to track materials, support local builders, and promote biodiversity. And importance of offsetting carbon emissions on site, rather than thousands of miles from Canterbury.
Alice Seller, our Head of Community, reminded the group this is just the beginning. She talked about how your feedback and data continues to help shape our plans, and asked for ideas about future events, outreach, and the community panel (Canterbury Community Panel (ongoing)).
Nick Berman, Head of Research, walked us through your feedback to date, including attitudes to public transport and the mix between traditional and more contemporary housing styles. He explained how this, too, feeds directly into the design code.
Looking Ahead
These will be regular events. The next is on 27th May (afternoon, same venue) where we’ll explain in more detail how Master Development works, and how the process moves from here. This would a particularly useful session for someone who wants to learn about South Canterbury from scratch. There will also be a talk on Affordable Housing.
Nick Berman will also be leading a walk across the site on 23rd May.
Apply to join the Community Panel
We are now recruiting for the South Canterbury Panel. We discussed this on Thursday. Please spread the word as we’d love representation from people across the community. (Canterbury Community Panel (ongoing)).
Finally
Thanks to Canterbury Bakery for the delicious spread. And the leftovers? We donated them to Catching Lives (Home | Catching Lives), a brilliant local charity supporting people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
We hope you left feeling upbeat and connected. We certainly did.
Thanks again and please spread the word. We’ll see you in May.