Otterpool Park Update: Homes England’s Westenhanger Land Move and the Pack Field Silence

Updated: 06:50 11/04/26

At Lympne Parish Council Annual Meeting on 8 April, FHDC leader Jim Martin said Homes England is in the process of acquiring land within walking distance of Westenhanger Station and that the site in question could not take more than 250 homes. One parcel appears to fit that description rather neatly. Since then, there has been silence.

At Wednesday’s annual meeting of Lympne Parish Council, Councillor Jim Martin made a remark that should have set alarm bells ringing well beyond the village hall. The leader of Folkestone & Hythe District Council said Homes England is in the process of acquiring land within walking distance of Westenhanger Station, and that the site in question could not accommodate more than 250 homes.

That is not vague boosterish talk about “progress”. It is a specific claim about a live land transaction tied to one of the largest development schemes in the country.

And it points, very obviously, to one piece of land.

As far as we are aware, the land behind Holiday Extras, marked in orange on the image above, is the only parcel in that area not already tied up by option agreements with the council. It sits in the right place. It is within walking distance of Westenhanger Station. It is also of a scale that makes the “no more than 250 homes” remark look plausible.

On the council’s own broad breakdown, it owns about 44% of the Otterpool site and holds options over a further 46%, while Homes England owns about 9%. On that basis, the Pack land appears to be the only parcel in that area which, so far as the Land Registry shows, is not already tied up by an option and could therefore be what Homes England is now seeking to acquire. The site is within walking distance of Westenhanger Station, extends to around 3 to 3.5 hectares, and could potentially accommodate about 60 to 80 homes or even more in flats. It is owned by Gerry and Carol Pack, who bought it for £1.1 million in July 2011.

That does not prove a deal has been struck. But if, as the Land Registry appears to show, this is the only land within the Otterpool boundary not already tied up by an option, then the question practically asks itself: when Cllr Jim Martin said Homes England was seeking to acquire land, where else could he have been talking about?

We have put that question to Homes England, Otterpool Park, Councillor Martin and Holiday Extras chief executive Matt Pack, son of Gerry & Carol Pack. So far, nothing. No clarification. No denial. No explanation. Just silence.

After twelve years of hype, delay, glossy images and moving target dates, that silence matters.

For years, Otterpool Park has been marketed as a grand, strategic and carefully planned new settlement. The public has heard plenty about vision, partnership, viability, infrastructure and garden-town ideals. But strip away the gloss and the reality is harder to dress up: not a single brick has been laid. Not one. So far, the project remains a costly town in draft, with more than £80 million committed and nothing built.

That is why Cllr Martin’s comment matters. It suggests that, behind all the public talk of wastewater infrastructure, collaboration agreements and outline consent, the more immediate issue is much simpler: land. We already know who controls almost all of the 750-hectare site: FHDC and Homes England. The Pack land appears to be the small remaining piece that neither controls. Homes England wants to get Otterpool moving. FHDC wants to get Otterpool moving. And both appear to want that done before the end of this Parliament.

That timing matters. Martin has said he thinks “the end of 2028 is when we’ll see bricks being laid”, while also admitting that “everything’s a guesstimate”. That is revealing. It shows the pressure now is not just to keep the scheme alive in reports, presentations and carefully worded updates. It is to show visible progress on the ground. Something people can actually see. And if Homes England has to step in and help kick-start that process, then that appears to be the direction of travel.

Because in a project like this, land is not a side issue. It is the issue.

It is no longer mainly a question of who owns the key parcels, who has options over them, who still needs to buy, who is being approached, who is holding out, or who stands to gain. According to the Land Registry, most of that has been settled already. The one obvious exception is the Pack land. This is where the real story now sits. And this is why the orange field matters.

If this is the parcel Cllr Martin was referring to, then the public is entitled to clear answers. Is Homes England in active discussions to acquire it? Has a deal already been agreed in principle? What is the land actually for: housing, access, infrastructure, or some combination of the three? What valuation is being used? And if public money is involved, how is value for money being assessed?

Those are not nosy questions. They are basic scrutiny questions.

After all these years, Otterpool should not still be a project where the clearest sign of movement is a rumoured land deal surrounded by silence. Yet that is where matters now stand.

So, for the moment, the orange field behind Holiday Extras is not just a field. It is a test of transparency. A test of candour. And a test of whether the people promoting Otterpool are prepared to tell the public how this scheme is really being put together.

Because if they are not, residents may reasonably conclude that the only part of Otterpool being delivered with any consistency is the silence.

Update: A Homes England Spokesperson has said “We are not at present in discussion with Mr & Mrs Pack about their land, at the moment we do not feel there is a need to acquire it. However, work on the Land Acquisition Strategy is still ongoing and should this view change, we will look to engage with them.”

The Shepway Vox Team

The Velvet Voices of Voxatiousness