AROUND one-tenth of the land that becomes vacant when the Ministry of Defence leaves RAF Brampton in 2013/14 could be used to provide jobs.

Huntingdonshire District Council planners have had what they call a ‘thinking aloud’ session with Brampton Parish Council about the future use of the site.

In contrast to the proposal of the site’s owner Defence Estates to maximise its value by planning 830 new homes there, HDC thinks fewer than 400 would probably be about right for the 49 hectares soon to be vacated.

The remainder of the 65-acre site is occupied by service married quarters that were sold to developers Annington 15 years ago, which the planners want to integrate into the future development.

“We don’t want the two to be separated by a fence,” senior planner Mike Huntington told The Hunts Post.

“We want to sort out improved pedestrian access to link the RAF site with the rest of the village, and we are thinking about what to do with the listed Brampton Park House, the officers’ mess.

“We have been testing different scenarios for the number of houses on the site. We are looking at about 400 or rather less.”

Mr Huntington said about five hectares could be given over to high-quality employment uses. “We are thinking about what type of uses would be appropriate in this nice landscaped setting. Perhaps the listed building would make a good corporate headquarters.”

HDC plans to start a public consultation exercise towards the end of August, with a view to a cabinet policy decision in November, when the planning document would be adopted. It would then become a material consideration in determining the MOD’s planning application.