North West Cambridge development

The site covers the area between the M11 motorway, Madingley Road and Huntingdon Road. The area previously contained farms belonging to the university. Outline planning permission for the North-West Cambridge Development or University Farm site was granted in 2013. This covers up to 3,000 dwellings, up to 2,000 student bedspaces, employment floorspace (commercial and academic), retail floorspace, a community centre, health care centre, a primary school and nurseries, a hotel and an energy centre. The development sets out to achieve high levels of sustainability, including many photovoltaic cells to gather solar energy, low levels of car use, a district heating network with energy centre scheme, communal waste collection systems, and the recycling of rainwater for irrigation and the flushing of toilets. Architecture practices involved in the development include: WilkinsonEyre, Alison Brooks, Mole Architects, Stanton Williams, Mecanoo, Sarah Wigglesworth Architects, RH Partnership, Marks Barfield Architects, MUMA, Maccreanor Lavington, and Witherford Watson Mann. == Eddington ==

Eddington is the name given by developers to a local centre in the North West Cambridge Development, It is part of Phase I of the North West Cambridge Development, and combines the Castle Ward in the northwest of the city with Girton, a parish in the district of South Cambridgeshire. In 2018 a very large Roman villa was excavated on a site next to the Park & Ride scheme in Eddington. Eddington is centred around Market Square, where there is a Sainsbury's supermarket. The Storey's Field community centre and nursery is adjacent, and was nominated for the 2018 Stirling Prize; key worker housing completed by Stanton Williams in 2019 was nominated for the 2021 Stirling Prize. Graduate students of Girton College are housed at Swirles Court. The Fata Morgana Tea House, designed by the German artists Wolfgang Winter and Berthold Hörbelt, sits on the western bank of Brook Leys lake. Except for the roof, almost the entire two-storey pavilion, including built-in benches, was made from undulating stainless steel welded grating. These photographs were taken in September 2017: cmglee Eddington Bunkers Hill entrance.jpg|Entrance from Bunkers Hill cmglee Eddington main square.jpg|Market square cmglee Eddington power station.jpg|Energy centre cmglee Eddington school front.jpg|Primary school cmglee Eddington Swirles Court.jpg|Swirles Court cmglee Eddington pond.jpg|A pond with Fata Morgana in the distance cmglee Eddington Fata Morgana tea house.jpg|Fata Morgana tea house and Brook Leys cmglee Eddington Fata Morgana artists.jpg|Berthold Hörbelt and Wolfgang Winter in Fata Morgana == Transport ==

The site is served by the Whippet Universal bus. Madingley Road Park and Ride lies to the south of Eddington. The Ridgeway, a cycle and pedestrian path runs through the site from Girton to Storey's Way. ==History==

• 2009: Area Action Plan adopted by Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire District Councils. This states: • "North West Cambridge will create a new University quarter, which will contribute to meeting the needs of the wider city community, and which will embody best practice in environmental sustainability." • June 2014: Name of Eddington announced, in honour of Sir Arthur Eddington who lived and worked nearby. Other names announced within North West Cambridge are open spaces Brook Leys and Storey's Field, and residential areas Ridgeway Village and Gravel Hill. • September 2016: University of Cambridge Primary School, adjacent to Eddington, is officially opened, although its first intake of children started in September 2015. This is the first operational unit of the North West Cambridge development. • June 2017: Swirles Court, student accommodation for Girton College, is completed. It is named for Bertha Swirles (Lady Jeffreys), a Girton alumna. • July 2017: the first residents move in to Eddington. • September 2017: Sainsbury's and Argos stores open. Go Whippet bus service U commences services to Eddington. An open day was held at Eddington with speeches from the University Vice-Chancellor Leszek Borysiewicz and local MPs Heidi Allen and Daniel Zeichner. == Future development ==

Eddington will include 700 residences for key workers at the University, 325 rooms for postgraduate students, the market square with Sainsbury's and local shops, the energy centre, and the health centre, and a hotel. The North West Cambridge Development is planned to eventually contain 3,000 homes, accommodation for 2,000 postgraduate students and of research facilities. The energy centre will be used to produce electricity as demand grows. == References ==