Morro Daventry brownfield scheme: circular design and delivery lessons for engineers
Reviewed by Tom Sullivan
First reported on The Construction Index
30 Second Briefing
Morro has handed over the first 14 of 52 homes in its £12.6m London Road brownfield redevelopment in Daventry, delivered with EMH Group and backed by Homes England, with all units specified with rooftop solar and EV charging. The project diverted more than 60 tonnes of hard‑to‑recycle waste from landfill and reused materials from the former site, adopting a circular construction approach and donating surplus offcuts to workshops at HMP Onley. Delivery also included 312 weeks of apprenticeships, 52 weeks of accredited training and 30 supply‑chain roles, alongside five direct site hires.
Technical Brief
- Morro is delivering 52 units ranging from one-bedroom to four-bedroom family homes.
- EMH Group acts as development partner, with capital support provided through Homes England funding.
- More than 60 tonnes of hard‑to‑recycle construction waste were diverted from landfill through on-site segregation.
- Materials salvaged from the former site were reincorporated into the build, embedding a circular construction strategy.
- Surplus timber and material offcuts were transferred to HMP Onley workshops for secondary fabrication and training use.
- Delivery generated 312 weeks of trade apprenticeships plus 52 weeks of accredited training for construction skills.
- Additional social value included school and college site visits, structured work experience and five direct site hires.
Our Take
Within the 810 Infrastructure stories in our database, relatively few brownfield UK housing schemes combine measurable social outcomes like 312 weeks of apprenticeships and 52 weeks of accredited training, suggesting the London Road project could be a reference case for Homes England on skills-linked delivery.
Diverting 60 tonnes of hard-to-recycle waste from landfill aligns this scheme with the sustainability-tagged subset of our 2,266 project pieces, where quantifiable circular-economy metrics are still comparatively rare and can strengthen planning and funding narratives for similar brownfield redevelopments.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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