Flock to a new life: Energy saving and innovative homes in a model community

Like other planned "urbanisations", such as the Prince of Wales's Poundbury in Dorset, Kings Hill has been called ugly, characterless and even unfriendly but perhaps a town built on the site of the old RAF West Malling should have expected some flak.

Originally planned as a business park, this joint venture between Kent County Council and an American property trust has seen the housing element expand and now the business park is a sideshow, albeit providing jobs for 12 per cent of Kings Hill townsfolk and making it "sustainable".

Bellway is among the developers filling Kings Hill's vacant plots dotted around the 800-acre site. There are now more than 2,000 homes here and the aim is to create up to 3,000. It is true that, at present, there is something of a Toytown-look to Kings Hill with its immaculate brick homes, squeaky-clean Waitrose and branded leisure centre.

This model community also has two schools, a surgery, cricket and football pitches and a championship golf course but there is not much that is quirky or individual.

It is a pleasure, therefore, to find that at Oaks Hamlet (oakshamlet.com), a collection of 63 homes tucked in a corner near the entrance to the park, something rather different is going on.

The sight of plastic sheep grazing on one of the tiny "greens" is a big giveaway.

"We started Oaks Hamlet five years ago and designed it in the Kentish vernacular style, with weather-boarded houses that look as though they come from a past era," says Tony Dowse, co-chairman of developer Environ. 

"Then other developers started doing similar things so we have gone back to modern homes that use a new wood frame system that is very energy efficient."

express.