Building the next stages of Alconbury Weald will start next year.

Demolition of the existing unused buildings close to the entrance is currently underway ready for the first of the new commercial buildings with the hub - a space for conferences and gym - being constructed by April.

Plans for the first step of phase one, to build 120 homes, will be submitted to Huntingdonshire District Council later this year, with the hope that building will start next summer and the homes to be marketed at the end of next year.

The design of the first primary school has also been updated and will be built, ready to open in September 2016.

Amongst the first phase of the development, which is expected to last five to six years, is the listed watch tower, which will be adjacent to a park and opposite a cricket field, and will be developed into a community building or pub.

Rebecca Britton, of Alconbury Weald developer Urban&Civic, said: “We have planned the development to follow the lines of the airfield so roads will be along the taxi ways and the airstrip will be turned into green space.

“The school will take a slightly different trajectory than the housing as it has to open in September 2016. It will be two-form entry, even though it won’t be necessary straight away.

“There will be sports pitches which won’t just be for the school but for the community as well. We also plan to have community space in the school. We have been to a lot of developments and don’t like it when community buildings come after homes which is why we want to be able to create communities earlier by allowing for extra space.

“We also don’t like it when people move into their new homes and building is still going on, sometimes in the same street, so we will be planting trees between stages of development to shield other works.”

She added: “We are building the business hub, which in the same style as the Incubator, next as we need extra meeting space as it has proved popular so far and we also want to provide facilities for lunchtime as that’s one of the first questions we get asked by businesses.”