Case study Nash Court Belbroughton

A development of new homes in and around a converted 18th Century mill building in Worcestershire is using Formpave’s Aquaflow sustainable urban drainage system (SuDS).

The new homes by Metis Developments at Nash Court, in Belbroughton, share a car park built above a culverted stream which used to power the old mill.

The location and volatility of the stream meant it was not possible to connect the houses to the soakaways on the other side of the culvert, so Metis Developments came to the experts at Formpave to see if they could engineer a permeable pavement that could deliver the solution.

To drain surface water from the car park and roofs, Formpave designed an infiltration system within the pavement itself, making use of the natural permeability of the ground. Hidden distribution boxes below the car park connect to the rainwater downpipes from each home delivering roof runoff straight into the permeable paving system.

The special sub-base aggregate ensures water can then gradually soak into the ground over a wide area. Metis Developments selected a block paved finish from Formpave’s wide range of products and in no more time than it takes to construct a normal car park the development was finished and ready for customers.

Paul Webb, Commercial Director at Metis Developments, said, “We needed effective permeable paving to be put in place at Nash Court to comply with the planning conditions, and so we didn’t hesitate in choosing Formpave’s Aquaflow and Aquapave SuDS.

“These were not only extremely effective but were also aesthetically pleasing and in keeping with the design of our luxury new homes at the development.”

Duncan Short, of contractors Logmoor Limited, who installed the SuDS, said, “This was a challenging site to design, due in part to the stream beneath the parking area, which meant connecting the homes’ external drainage to the culvert was not an option, and a standard Tarmac base layer could not be used, as surface water would not have drained effectively.

“We opted for 1,200m2 of Formpave’s Aquaflow and Aquapave SuDS, as this solved our drainage issues and was also the most cost-effective infiltration system of its type.”

The whole process was made simple by Formpave’s experienced design team who provided the detailed design to overcome the site issues.

Formpave’s Aquaflow and Aquapave offer systems capable of dispersing up to 4,500mm of run-off water per square metre per hour. They are among a range of cost effective, sustainable permeable paving solutions provided by the company for traditional hard landscaping and urban drainage installations.

Established in 1989, Formpave is a world-leading authority in permeable paving. Its systems clean and drain surface water run-off in a controlled way and can also store water for purposes such as flushing lavatories, watering plants and washing cars.

Formpave offers a comprehensive free design service to suit all requirements, including technical and professional advice, preparation of draft proposals and validation of the client’s own designs. All designs provided by Formpave are covered by professional indemnity insurance and benefit from the company’s 20 years experience in designing permeable paving systems.