Waterbeach
Archaeology and Development at Waterbeach
Waterbeach combines a former barracks site, fen-edge landscape and substantial planned growth — three things that each change the archaeological requirement.
- Authority
- Greater Cambridge Shared Planning
- Landscape
- Fen edge with former military use
- Main variable
- Uneven deposit survival across the site
- Plan around
- Infrastructure and phase sequencing
The landscape
The area sits on the edge of the fen, where higher ground meets drained land. Fen-edge locations were attractive for settlement over long periods, and the transition zone often produces archaeology across several periods within a short distance. Former military use adds a second layer: parts of such sites are heavily truncated by twentieth-century construction, while other parts are effectively undisturbed.
What it means for your development
For a developer this means the archaeological scope is unlikely to be uniform across the site. Evidence of where previous construction has already removed deposits is commercially valuable, because it supports a reduced scope in those areas. Equally, the undisturbed margins can carry the most significant archaeology and the largest share of the mitigation cost.
Questions
Common questions on this
Does former military use remove the need for archaeology?
No, but it changes the argument. Where you can evidence that ground has already been stripped or built over, the case for reducing archaeological scope in those areas is a reasonable one to put to the advisor.
Project review
Developing at Waterbeach?
Send the planning position and the site plan. We will set out the likely archaeological requirement, the sequence and where the programme risk sits.