The ECF joint venture of Homes England, Legal & General and Muse aims to build 1,300 homes with spaces for shops, leisure and offices at street level.

The 8-acre site is adjacent to the town’s historic viaduct and new Stockport Interchange, located on land either side of King Street West.

Under present plans, the aim is to be on site with the first phase of development at the bus stop site on Chestergate by the end of next year.

The scheme will then be phased and take around 10 years to fully complete.

Eamonn Boylan, interim chair at Stockport MDC, said: “As the largest single development in the Town Centre West masterplan, Stockport 8 marks a significant step towards realising our ambitious vision to set a new standard of town centre living.

“Our plans for Stockport 8 will build on the momentum of our housing delivery to date, adding a further 1,300 homes to the 1,200 already completed or underway.

“This is not just a step, but a leap forward towards our ambition to deliver 4,000 homes – a goal which the MDC is well on the way to achieving.”

The team behind Stockport 8 includes architect shedkm, landscape architects Planit, project manager Walker Sime, Tace (MEP) and Renaissance for structural and civil engineering and Arup on highways and transport.