The site is considered as highly sustainable due to being:

• Well-connected to West Horndon Station, providing access to London in 28 minutes
• Located on the A127 ‘Southern Growth Corridor’, a key economic driver for the region
• Surrounded by Thorndon Country Park to the north, Langdon Hills Country Park to the east, the Mardyke Valley to the south, and the Thames Chase Community Forest to the west
• Well-served by employment opportunities that are of local, regional and national significance at Horndon Industrial Park, Brentwood Enterprise Park and Thames Freeport

The Brentwood Local Plan 2016-2033 was adopted in March 2022. Throughout the preparation of the Brentwood Local Plan, Nuttys Farm was promoted for development. It was considered in the Council’s evidence base as a ‘reasonable alternative’ for growth due to its sustainable location.

Earlier this year, Brentwood, Thurrock, and Basildon Borough Councils, in partnership with Essex County Council, submitted a joint Expression of Interest to the Government’s New Town Task force. The submission suggested that growth in this area could accommodate around 20,000 new homes. No work has been done on exactly where those homes would be located, but it is estimated this could be an additional 2,000 – 5,000 homes within Brentwood.

More widely, South Essex has been identified as a national priority growth area, with ambitions for the creation of over 100,000 new jobs by 2050, the construction of 96,000 homes by 2038, and a £15 billion increase in the area’s contribution towards the UK economy. Horndon Rise has the ability to make a meaningful contribution towards these national ambitions, whilst delivering immediate benefits to local people.