“You are being held to ransom by developers,” a disgruntled Derbyshire villager yelled after plans for dozens of homes near a medieval castle were approved.
At a South Derbyshire District Council meeting last night (Tuesday, March 24) councillors approved plans from Nightingale Land for 75 homes in Linton Road, Castle Gresley.
Previous plans for 100 homes on the same plot from a different developer were rejected and knocked back at appeal six years ago, in large part due to their impact on the neighbouring motte and bailey castle which gives the village its name.
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A total of 85 objection letters to this latest plan were filed with the council by residents, along with opposition from the parish council, largely due to highway safety and lack of supporting services.
Becky Lees, who has lived in the village for 15 years, said there has been “unprecedented development” during that time, while acknowledging the need for new homes, saying this must be done safely.
She said the development set an “unwelcome precedent” for future projects, saying the “council was being held to ransom”.
Ms Lees said: “Developers and landowners have their own motive and you are giving developers and landowners carte blanche (a blank cheque).”
Beverley Moss, agent for the applicant, said: “The need for new home and affordable housing cannot be ignored.
“Affordable housing has been built nearby but there is more needed.
“There are 800 households on the waiting list, so the need is undeniable.”
She said evidence showed there was sufficient capacity in the nearby schools.
Derbyshire County Council has not asked for funding to expand facilities at Pingle School due to a forecast reduction in pupil numbers over the next five years and said the nearest two primary schools had a “surplus” of spaces.
Cllr Alistair Tilley said the scheme had 25 fewer homes from the previous rejection but did not have enough extra changes to warrant approving it.
For each item in the meeting councillors were told the authority did not have a required five year housing land supply, following a recent planning appeal, and was now under pressure to approve homes unless there were major reasons not to.
The appeal left the council urgently needing to find housing sites totalling 1,500 extra properties to earmark for new homes which can be delivered before 2040.
Cllr Tilley said: “Too much weight has been applied to the five year housing land supply. The same reasons for objection from 2019 still apply, it is outside the settlement boundary and it is not sustainable.”
He said the project would represent a “dense urban form on the entrance to the village” which would “dominate the landscape to its detriment”.
Cllr Dan Pegg said he and his wife work at two local schools and that despite the statement from the county council “the schools are full”.
He said: “I work at a school and I do not make numbers up. Schools are using converted cupboards and corridors for teaching space and classrooms are at breaking point.”
Cllr Pegg said a new primary school on the Drakelow Power Station site would be too late for existing residents and would prioritise residents living on the surrounding 2,000-home estate.
He said: “You can keep building houses, go ahead, but you need to build schools too, schools are at breaking point.”
Cllr Pegg said approving homes without schools was like “dangling a carrot” in front of people in need.
Cllr Amy Wheelton said the developer ought to be asked to resurface the bridleway which runs through the site, with its condition said to be in need of repair, which was supported by other councillors.
She said: “This is something that we would normally turn down because it is outside the village but we cannot demonstrate a five-year housing land supply.”
Cllr Alan Jones said: “Without the King’s Newton appeal we wouldn’t be here today.”
Cllr Kalila Storey said: “We know that we probably would not be looking to approve this application had we not had the decision about King’s Newton.”
Councillors approved the plans by a vote of nine votes in favour, two against and one abstaining.
Residents shouted on their way out of the room: “This is an utterly corrupt system. You are being held to ransom by developers. We will speak when we want to speak and we will leave in our own time.”