Bellway plc and English Partnerships have announced a joint venture to develop the 150ha Barking Reach site in the Thames Gateway. The company, Barking Riverside, will oversee the masterplanning and development of a new mixed use community of up to 11,000 homes, including key worker housing, and community facilities. “This is a groundbreaking initiative which brings together the combined strength of the public and private sectors to tackle one of the most long-standing and prominent vacant sites in the London Gateway,” said housing minister Keith Hill. The brownfield housing development will be one of the largest of its type in Europe, and was identified as a key growth area in the government’s Communities Plan. [MMC-IMG=522-A=Left]