Council approves next phase of Bath Press site regeneration
Bath and North East Somerset Council has unanimously approved new plans for the western parcel of the Bath Press site on Lower Bristol Road.
Developer City & Country will now prepare for the next phase of development, having already begun construction on the eastern parcel in 2025.
The plans are part of the regeneration of one of Bath’s most significant brownfield sites, the former printworks founded by Sir Isaac Pitman in 1889. Building on the existing scheme, City & Country appointed Bath-based architects Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios and landscape architects Grant Associates to design 220 dwellings, including 34 affordable homes.
The majority of the proposed homes will be one, two and three-bedroom apartments arranged across three apartment blocks that taper into shared courtyard spaces. Five townhouses, built in traditional Bath ‘mansion’ style, will complete the residential offering onsite.
Keith Bradley, Founding Partner of Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, said, “Working with City & Country and Grant Associates, we have designed a distinctive, sustainable neighbourhood that responds to the character of Victorian Bath, creates a greener gateway into the city and delivers 220 much-needed new homes. Planning approval for Bath Press West is an important step towards bringing this long-vacant brownfield site back into use and completing the regeneration of this important part of Bath with a place that feels connected, generous and built to last.”
City & Country will also create three new commercial units facing onto Lower Bristol Road, alongside three children’s play areas, and walking and cycling connections to existing routes.
Simon Vernon-Harcourt, Design & Planning Director at City & Country, added, “We were especially pleased to have received unanimous support from the planning committee, who recognised the outstanding design quality, which will enable us to realise the wider vision for Bath Press.
“Once delivered this will turn a sterile brownfield site into sensitively designed homes within a rich and secluded urban landscape.”
