Thetford Abbey Estate redevelopment branded 'life sentence'

Members of Thetford Town Council have penned an official letter of opposition to proposals for the Abbey Estate, which have been brought forward by Flagship Housing Group.

The redevelopment of the 1,100-home estate would take place in phases over two decades and include the demolition and rebuild of hundreds of houses along with the construction of up to 500 new properties. 

An outline planning application submitted by housing company Flagship is set to be considered by Breckland Council, which will decide whether the £250m project should go ahead.

Thetford Town Council has urged the district authority to refuse the application amid fears about increased strain on local services, the displacement of an established community and the loss of open space in the estate - described by the council as a "blatant land grab".

The Abbey Estate in Thetford (Image: Sonya Duncan) The letter reads: "The residents of the Abbey Estate, whose lives will be blighted by this proposed redevelopment for a generation, are almost universally opposed to it. 

"Their health, wellbeing, happiness and peaceful enjoyment of their homes, should be of paramount importance to everyone concerned."

An illustration of how the Abbey Estate in Thetford might look after redevelopment (Image: Flagship Group) This response will be sent to officials at Breckland Council, where the application will be determined by the authority's planning committee in the near future. 

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The Guildhall in Thetford, where meetings of the town council are held (Image: Newsquest) Terry Land, a member of both councils, spoke in support of the letter at a meeting of Thetford Town Council this week. 

He said: "Since the beginning of the consultation, residents have suffered worry, anxiety and an uncertain future.

"For many, the two decades of proposed development amounts to something like a life sentence - what is an 84-year-old going to do with below market value recompense for the house she's lived in and loved for over half a century?"