SEVEN developers have been chosen to build more than 2,500 low carbon homes across Oxfordshire in the next 10 years.

Oxford City Housing Ltd (OCHL), the city council’s housing company, selected the developers as part of its £1 billion sustainable housing development framework for building new homes.

OCHL aims to acquire and develop more than 2,000 new homes on, as of yet, unspecified sites across the county in the next 10 years.

The council and OCHL will then aim to open up the sustainable development framework to other landlords and councils, leading to more than 2,500 homes in total.

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Alex Hollingsworth, the city council’s cabinet member for planning and housing delivery, said: “This is great news, and a significant step forward for our housing company.

“OCHL is a social impact developer committed to building the right homes for Oxfordshire, where all six of our county’s councils have declared a climate emergency.

“This means low carbon homes now, on the road to zero carbon by 2030.”

Barratt Developments, Equans, Hill Group and Osborne have been chosen for larger projects worth more than £8 million, while three other developers will run smaller projects.

Helen Horne, managing director of OCHL, said: “OCHL’s touchstones are good design, high quality and low carbon, and the developers we’ve chosen for our sustainable development framework also embody our principles.

“We look forward to working together to build the homes that Oxfordshire needs.”

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POETS (Planning Oxfordshire’s Environment and Transport Sustainably) is a group of planning, environment and transport professionals and academics.

Chris Cousins, former head of sustainable development at Oxfordshire County Council, said: “Any new housing that’s built in Oxfordshire ought to be low carbon so it’s a welcome start, though it’s a small proportion.

“Trying to improve energy performance and carbon emissions is welcomed, particularly if they’re buildings for social rent.

“However, the development of Oxford North or proposals for Oxford West End for commercial development exacerbate problems such as Oxford’s workers commuting into the city.

“It would make sense for Oxford West End to be housing rather than commercial development.

“There’s already an imbalance between employment and housing in Oxford, the cost of housing is only going to increase.”

OCHL’s sustainable development framework involves the use of methods like timber frame and modular construction, meaning large components of buildings are created offsite at a factory.

Sections are then transported to the site where they are assembled.

These methods use less energy than traditional builds and result in less waste to landfill.