THE companies behind a new housing development being built on former paddocks in Oakley have welcomed visitors for the first time.

Miller Homes Southern was given the green light to build 110 new homes in February on land to the east of Station Road.

Miller Homes and Wates Developments submitted the reserved matters application after winning an appeal against the council’s decision to reject its original plan.

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Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council initially rejected the proposals in 2020 labelling them “an opportunistic land grab”.

The plans also received 318 letters of objection from residents.

Now, Miller Homes and Wates Developments have welcomed their first visitors to the new housing site known as Oakley Grange.

The housebuilder – whose southern regional office is based nearby in Basingstoke – opened the doors to its sales centre and show home last month.

As a tribute to the site’s history, Miller Homes has included a large canvas within its show home which features a horse, as a nod to the former use of the land as paddocks.

When complete, the development will comprise 110 new homes, of which 44 are designated as affordable housing. There is also 5,280sqm of public open space being created within the boundary of the site.

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Miller Homes is contributing £151,000 towards local services in Oakley via the developer’s Section 106 agreement, in addition to the £2m Community Infrastructure Levy agreed as part of the planning process for the development.

Katrina Crawford, sales and marketing director of Miller Homes Southern, said: “We were really pleased to welcome visitors to Oakley Grange this month after a huge team effort to prepare the development in readiness for our grand opening.

“We have an operational sales centre on-site for prospective buyers to visit and talk to our dedicated sales team, while we also opened our show home on 8th September which can be viewed by visitors to the development to provide an insight into the style and quality of new housing we are delivering in Oakley.

“With the show home and sales centre now open, our attention turns to the next milestone at Oakley Grange which will be welcoming our first residents to the development and their brand new homes later in the autumn.”

Miller Homes is building a mix of two, three, four and five-bedroom homes at Oakley Grange. Prices currently start from £379,995.

The interior design of the show home at the development has been created by Andover-based Artspace Interior Design.

For more information on the homes being built at Oakley Grange, visit millerhomes.co.uk/new-homes/south-east/oakley-grange-oakley.aspx.