East Suffolk Council
Beccles and Worlingham Garden Neighbourhood
Mixed use urban extension including residential development, primary school, public open space, indoor/outdoor sports facilities, allotments, local shops, community centre and employment development.
The Beccles and Worlingham Garden Neighbourhood (BWGN) is a site comprising approximately 89.8 hectares of land, bordered by Ellough Road to the east, the Beccles Southern Relief Road to the south, M&H Plastics to the west and the built up edge of Beccles and Worlingham to the north. The site is allocated within the Waveney Local Plan (2019) under Policy WLP3.1 for a mixed use development including:
- approximately 1250 new dwellings
- retirement community comprising a care home/nursing home and extra and/or sheltered dwellings;
- primary school and pre-school setting
- open space
- community hub
- employment development
The BWGN site is split into two parcels referred to as the east parcel and west parcels. These parcels are split at Oak Lane with all land to the east of Oak Lane falling within the east parcel and all land to the west within the west parcel. There is triangular shaped parcel of land within the centre of the site which falls outside of either parcel and will not be coming forward as part of the masterplanned approach to the BWGN.
Whilst the two parcels will be coming forward individually as planning applications, both landowners have been working collaboratively to produce the BWGN masterplan for which the planning applications will relate to. The current masterplan can be viewed below, albeit the landowners are continuing to work with East Suffolk Council’s planning team to resolve some outstanding matters and therefore the applications(s) may be subject to change and re-consultation.
Beccles and Worlingham Garden Neighbourhood Masterplan
Similarly, both parcels are working together in order to provide infrastructure to the local community either through contributions under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 or to be built out by the developers. Policy WLP3.1 of the Local Plan and the council’s Infrastructure Funding Statement provide an indication of what contributions and infrastructure may be required from the development. The landowners are continuing to work with the council and their consultees to comprehensively understand the infrastructure needs which are necessary to support the development.
East parcel planning application
Application reference number: DC/25/4214/OUT
The planning application for the east parcel has been submitted which includes the following:
Outline planning application (with all matters reserved except for access) for a mixed-use sustainable extension allowing for the provision of up to 721 dwellings (Use Class C3) including 30% affordable housing and 5% custom build properties, 5 hectares of employment land, land for a primary school, a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC), a community hub (incorporating retail floorspace, preschool and sports pavilion), children’s play areas, public open space and Suitable Alternative Natural Green Space (SANG)
To have your say on the east parcel application you can make a representation via Public Access or contact us directly. All representations received can be viewed through Public Access.
Application updates and timeframe
The below timeframe will continue to be updated as and when there are updates to the application process.
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| 31 October 2025 | Application received |
| 5 December 2025 | Application valid date |
| 5 December 2025 | Consultation letters sent |
| 9 December 2025 | Site notices posted (30 day period) |
| To be confirmed | Press advert published |
| 14 January 2026 | End of consultation period |
Environmental Impact Assessment
The proposed development has been screened (reference: DC/21/3671/EIA) as constituting an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) development. An Environmental Statement accompanies this application and is available through the Public Access link above, and a hard copy is also available at the following address:
Riverside
4 Canning Road
Lowestoft
NR33 0EQ
The aim of Environmental Impact Assessment is to protect the environment by ensuring that a local planning authority when deciding whether to grant planning permission for a project, which is likely to have significant effects on the environment, does so in the full knowledge of the likely significant effects, and takes this into account in the decision making process. The aim of Environmental Impact Assessment is also to ensure that the public are given early and effective opportunities to participate in the decision making procedures.
The Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations (2017) explain how to decide which projects need an EIA, and how those projects should be assessed, consulted on, and decided. Please note however, a conclusion that a development does not have a significant effect on the environment within the meaning of the EIA regulations is not the same as a determination that the effect is acceptable or not acceptable when deciding whether to grant a planning permission or not.
West parcel
While the west parcel has not yet submitted a planning application, the landowners are committed to continue their collaborative work with the east parcel and East Suffolk Council to ensure a cohesive, sustainable and well-designed garden neighbourhood which addresses community and infrastructure needs, comes forward on the allocated site.
Further updates on the progress on the delivery of the west parcel will be published in due course.