Chipping Ongar, Essex
Residential

The name "Ongar" means "grass land" and the word "Chipping" is old English for "market-place". Chipping Ongar was an important market town in the Middle Ages. The remains of the motte-and-bailey Ongar Castle, built in c.1086 are to the west of the high street.

The central part of the High Street is a widened main street of the type found in many older English towns. This historic thoroughfare is lined with over 70 listed buildings and protected by the Chipping Ongar Conservation Area, one of the first to be designated by Essex County Council nearly 50 years ago.

The challenge was to design a layout that was sensitive to the site’s location (by showing how the how analysis of the surrounding settlement  influenced the layout) and to balance this with the requirements of the local authority, the Quality Review Panel, The Strategic Housing Market Assessment and to also meet the housing numbers in the allocation.

The site is close to the town’s conservation area. Key characteristic of this area influenced the layout as follows:

  • Views are revealed

  • Views are framed

  • Evolved over time

  • Sense of place

  • Streets are compositions

  • Variety of character

  • Mostly 2 storey with some 3 storey in significant locations

  • Key, Vista Stop and Gateway buildings

  • Clear hierarchy of streets

  • Courtyards behind frontages

  • Undulating building lines

  • Steep roof pitches and varied ridge lines

The Epping Forest District Council Local Plan required a ‘Concept Framework’ to agree high level principles for the site. Now endorsed by the Council’s Cabinet, all planning applications for the site must align with the Concept Framework. Working with Liz Lake Associates, the document and associated public consultation material was produced.

Client
City&Country

Task
Prepare a residential layout for 135 new homes as part of an SPG Framework Document.

Role
Architect

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