The 15 new eco-friendly houses at Longcot in Oxfordshire, which are now under construction, have received a prestigious accolade for demonstrating ‘national leadership in implementing One Planet Living’. Created by international sustainability charity Bioregional, the One Planet Living is a system for planning sustainable development and keeping them on track to achieve their goals.

Thanks to their use of timber, wood fibre and hemp-lime in the construction process, the new homes in the Kings Farm Close development will have near zero carbon footprints. Emissions of climate-changing carbon dioxide gas caused by their construction are about 90% lower than for a conventional brick-built new home, while future emissions of carbon dioxide will also be much lower than normal houses as heating requirements will be very low.

Oxford Advanced Living, the developer, aims to also enhance the variety of animal and wildflower species on the land in and around the development, which has been used for pasture. A fifth of the site’s total area will be shared green space, planted and managed with native trees to support wildlife.

“This was our first project where we also put a real focus on how we could support the creation of a sustainable community. We’re committed to delivering the Action Plan and will continue to evolve the actions as the project develops. We believe that residents will be able to, and will in fact be encouraged to, lead sustainable lifestyles at Kings Farm Close, and we look forward to their feedback to help us with future projects,” said Martin Pike, Director of Oxford Advanced Living.

Six of the 15 homes are designated as affordable in one of the most expensive regions of Britain. Four of them will be let to tenants at below market rents by Sovereign Housing Association, and two are for shared home ownership, helping people get on the first rung of the property ladder. Meanwhile, the remaining nine homes are for sale on the open market.

The developer and its builders, Greencore Construction, have drawn up a One Planet Living action plan for the new homes covering all aspects of sustainability – social, economic and environmental. This ambitious plan is based on ten easy-to-grasp One Planet Living principles covering issues such as water, energy, wildlife, waste and contribution to the local economy. National Leadership status was granted after Bioregional reviewed the plan.