11th August 2026

Building more than homes: £5.57m committed to the Abbots Vale community

Creating a successful new neighbourhood is about much more than building homes. It means investing in the schools, health services, transport connections and community facilities that people will rely on for years to come.

Through the Section 106 agreement for our Southern Neighbourhood at Abbots Vale, Hopkins Homes has committed £5,574,334.83 in financial contributions, plus indexation, to support local infrastructure and public services.

Indexation means these contributions are increased where construction costs rise, using the recognised Building Cost Information Service index. This helps protect the real value of the funding, ensuring it keeps pace with the cost of delivering new schools, transport improvements and other essential community infrastructure.

The funding will help provide additional education capacity, strengthen transport connections, improve local rights of way, support healthcare and provide resources for library services in Bury St Edmunds.

It sits alongside wider commitments secured through the agreement, including affordable housing, publicly accessible open space and land and infrastructure for a new primary school.

Nearly £4 million for education

Education represents the largest part of our financial commitment at Abbots Vale, with a total of £3,985,553.50, plus indexation, allocated to early-years, primary, secondary and sixth-form provision.

Education contribution	Hopkins Homes commitment
Temporary primary-school provision	£250,000.00
Pre-school provision	£324,611.00
Primary-school provision	£1,693,380.50
Secondary-school provision	£1,405,278.00
Sixth-form provision	£312,284.00
Total education contribution	£3,985,553.50

The temporary primary-school contribution will help provide additional capacity while the permanent school planned for Abbots Vale is brought forward.

The agreement also makes provision for a minimum two-hectare site for a new primary school within the Southern Neighbourhood, the land to be fully serviced to the boundary. The site is intended to accommodate up to 420 primary-school places and 60 early-years places, the design and construction of which will be brought forward by Suffolk County Council.

The primary-school contribution is intended to support the delivery of the new school, while the pre-school funding will help provide a new early-years setting within the new primary school. Secondary and sixth-form contributions can support facilities serving the development, including Sybil Andrews Academy, Abbeygate Sixth Form College or other secondary schools serving the site.

More than £1.46 million for transport and connectivity

Helping residents move around safely and sustainably is another important part of the Abbots Vale commitments.

Hopkins Homes is contributing £1,467,983.73, plus indexation, towards public transport, highway infrastructure, local rights of way and residential travel planning.

This includes:

Transport and connectivity contribution	Hopkins Homes commitment
Public transport	£750,000.00
Highway improvements	£353,862.66
Public rights of way	£240,000.00
Residential travel planning	£124,454.40
Total transport and connectivity contribution	£1,467,983.73

In addition to highway improvement works being undertaken by HH as part of the planning permission, the highway funding can support improvements to strategic and local routes around Bury St Edmunds, including connections with the A14 and key junctions serving the town.

The public-rights-of-way contribution will help improve the local walking network around the development, supporting better connections between Abbots Vale and the surrounding community.

Our travel-plan contribution will fund travel planning, resident surveys and the ongoing monitoring of sustainable travel measures on our Abbots Vale development. Together with the public-transport contribution, this will help give residents a wider range of choices for their everyday journeys.

Supporting local health and library services

Our Section 106 commitments also recognise the additional demand that new homes can place on existing community services.

A contribution of £115,197.60, plus indexation, will support local NHS services. Under the agreement, the funding is directed towards public health provision at Mount Farm Surgery in Bury St Edmunds.

A further £5,600, plus indexation, will support library services. This can be used for lending and reference stock, audiovisual and homework-support materials, and public information technology equipment serving the local community.

Together, the health and library contributions amount to £120,797.60, plus indexation.

Providing more affordable homes

The community benefits at Abbots Vale extend beyond the financial contributions.

The Section 106 agreement provides for 30% of the homes in each approved residential phase to be affordable housing. The planned tenure mix is 80% rented homes and 20% intermediate housing, which can include options such as shared ownership.

Their delivery is linked to the construction and occupation of the open-market homes in each phase. This helps ensure affordable housing is provided as the neighbourhood grows, supporting the creation of a balanced and inclusive community rather than being left until the end of the development.

Creating green spaces for the long term

Public open space is also an important part of the plans for the Southern Neighbourhood.

The agreement provides for these spaces to be transferred to an approved management body, together with appropriate access, drainage and maintenance arrangements. They are intended to remain available for public use over the long term.

This means the benefits of the development will include not only new homes and infrastructure, but also green spaces where residents can walk, play, meet and spend time outdoors.

A lasting investment in Bury St Edmunds

At a glance, our confirmed financial commitments comprise:

Area of investment	Contribution
Education and skills	£3,985,553.50
Transport and connectivity	£1,467,983.73
Health and library services	£120,797.60
Total	£5,574,334.83, plus indexation

These financial contributions form part of a much broader package. The overall value of our commitments is greater still when the affordable homes, school land and supporting infrastructure, and public open space are taken into account.

Through our work at Abbots Vale, we are helping to create more than a collection of new homes. We are supporting the facilities, connections and services that will help the neighbourhood and the wider Bury St Edmunds community thrive for generations to come.