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Long before the race to save the planet left the starting blocks, Sir Terence Conran was already influencing generations of Brits keen to embrace his ideas about furniture, interior design and food. Now, in an era dominated by environmental concerns, he is hoping to extend his influence still further: to where and how we live.

Planners at Broadland district council in Norfolk have just approved a 22-home “green hamlet” designed by Conran & Partners, his architecture and design studio. The homes – 17 detached, plus a terrace of five affordable houses – will be built in natural clearings in preserved woodland on the edge of Drayton village, a few miles from Norwich.

So, is the man who restyled the inside of our homes with Habitat in the 1960s, helped regenerate the south side of the Thames in the 1980s and brought new flair to our dining habits with his restaurants in the 1990s making a takeover bid for the nation’s homes? Will we all soon be living in a green and pleasant Conranland?

“Good heavens, I hope not – I would find that rather depressing,” he says. “I may put things in front of people in our shops and through my designs, which help them make choices, or give them practical advice in my books. But their home should always be a reflection of their own personality and not mine.”

Nevertheless, last summer, Conran, 76, received a favourable response when he presented his ideas for woodland-based eco-communities to Gordon Brown – although perhaps the enthusiastic reception was not entirely surprising, given that Conran has reportedly advised him on housing.

The Drayton scheme is the pilot for a larger eco-community of 4,000 homes, and Conran & Partners is part of a consortium of players in the housebuilding industry hoping to work with one of the developers chosen to build one of the 10 zero-carbon eco-towns planned in Britain.

Is this foray into sustainability a bit of a departure for a man better known for sleek style and urban chic? Certainly not, says the cigar-smoking design guru. “More than 10 years ago, our architects designed the Longman headquarters in Harlow, Essex, which was considered the greenest office building in the country and very much ahead of its time,” he says. “I passionately believe that as designers – whether we are working on buildings, products or even modes of transport – we have a great deal of responsibility to find eco-friendly solutions to the serious and real problems that threaten future generations.

“Eco-towns are going to be very much part of the future, and it is vital they are affordable and comfortable and that they function as places to live in their own right.”

The Drayton hamlet is a mix of three, four- and five-bedroom homes. No trees will be felled to make way for the properties, which will have pitched clay-tile roofs and be finished in render and timber cladding, with triple glazing and an array of eco-features. The hot-water system will be solar-powered, and rainwater, harvested and stored underground, will be used to flush lavatories and water gardens. The homes will be as airtight as possible and highly insulated: wood-burning stoves and small gas-fired boilers will provide top-up heating.

As a result, the development will reach level 4 of the new Code for Sustainable Homes, which defines six levels of eco-efficiency. Level 6 – zero carbon – will be mandatory for every new home built in Britain by 2016.

Matthew Wood, the director at Conran & Partners responsible for the Drayton scheme, does not share industry concerns about the difficulty and cost of meeting such targets. “It has been surprisingly easy to achieve level 4, which will soon become the norm,” he says. “There is no reason why all housebuilders cannot achieve it.” He believes resistance will diminish as homebuyers begin to appreciate the lower running costs of such homes.

On-site power generation – which would have helped it achieve a higher sustainability grading – was ruled out for the Drayton scheme because of its size. So, too, were community facilities such as a school, health centre, small supermarket and office space, which are an integral part of the plans for Conran’s larger eco-town, but were already available locally in this case.

One surprise, given the credentials of the firm behind the houses, is their somewhat ordinary appearance. Conran refutes suggestions he’s lost his edge – it seems the modest lines are deliberate.

“That, in itself, is quite unusual as many new homes today fall into the pastiche or reproduction styles,” he says. “Most housebuilders have also dabbled in the contemporary – unusual shapes, quirky room arrangements, intricate detailing – which many buyers love.

“But what there is little of are houses that are easy to live with and maintain; designs that are of their time but in a modest way. Many of my designs – the Royal Doulton collection is a good example – are plain, simple, useful and can slip seamlessly and comfortably into people’s lives. This is one of the aspects we are trying to achieve here.”

The big question is: will his eco-homes sell? They’re not cheap. The price of the smallest three-bed detached is expected to start at £300,000; a five-bedder will cost £500,000, and prices for the affordable homes are yet to be finalised. Phil Kirby, the strategic director and chief planner at Broadland council, says it’s important to give designers and developers the chance to demonstrate what sort of sustainable homes they can build, and is confident of demand.

Given that five-bed new-builds in nearby estates are priced at £350,000 and the average house price in Drayton is £250,000, others aren’t so sure. “Eco-homes come at a premium, and I do not think there are enough people willing to pay those prices yet,” says Dave Richardson, head of group marketing for Howards, a local estate agency. He nevertheless predicts the affordable properties will be snapped up: “If people can have an eco-home and qualify for an affordable property, I’m sure they will.”

The government’s proposals

Integral to the government’s promise last year to build 3m new homes by 2020 are its plans for 10 zero-carbon eco-towns: small new communities of between 5,000 and 20,000 homes, offering affordable housing and sustainable living.

So far, more than 50 submissions to build them have been received. The Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) says that in a few weeks’ time, Caroline Flint, the housing minister, will announce a “long shortlist” of favoured sites and their developers.

However, depending on the quality of the submissions, the DCLG says it may even announce the final 10 successful bids at that time.

All the proposed schemes must have efficient links to surrounding urban centres and good community infrastructure, including a secondary school, and between 30% and 50% of housing must be affordable.

However, the plan is not without its critics: the Wildlife Trusts believe not enough attention is being paid to ecological concerns.

Emma Wells

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