166 homes are considered ‘in space for 122’

CONFUSION surrounds the number of homes earmarked for a proposed housing development on fields bordering the M62 at Cleckheaton.

Plans for the land, off Whitechapel Road and close to Whitechapel Church, have been submitted to Kirklees Council’s Local Plan, which is to address the borough’s housing needs.

But there are growing concerns that villages in Kirklees are losing their uniqueness and rural nature as they are increasingly swamped by overdevelopment.

And after campaigners in Honley described one scheme for 90-plus houses in Honley as ‘aggressive expansion’ their comments were echoed by residents in Cleckheaton whose homes overlook another proposed building site.

Planning documents indicate that the 11-acre (4.5 hectare) parcel of land can accommodate up to 170 dwellings. Developer Barratt say they are considering 166 houses.

Yet local people say the planning inspector recommended just 122 homes.

Val Dickinson, who has lived in the area for 25 years, attended a public meeting at Cleckheaton Town Hall. Barratt officials had a plan on the table for 166 houses but the planning inspector recommended 122 houses.

She said: “I asked if it was fiction. They said they were going for the higher number and that it was going to planning.

“We are unsure what is going to be built. It’s very unsettling.”