Developer in new fight for greenfield housing
PEEL SAYS GOVERNMENT DECISION TO REFUSE PERMISSION FOR 600 HOMES WAS UNLAWFUL
PROPERTY giants Peel are to seek a statutory review of a decision by the government to reject, for a second time, plans for 600 homes on fields in Salford.
They say the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, James Brokenshire, incorrectly interpreted national housing policy to dismiss their appeals for new homes at Broadoak between Monton and Worsley - rendering the decision unlawful.
In November the Secretary of State ruled the homes would ‘fragment and detract from the openness and continuity of the Worsley greenway’ and would cause ‘unacceptable harm to its character and its value as an amenity and open recreational resource.’
But a spokesperson for Peel said: “In our view, the decision brushed aside the genuine needs of families and people on affordable housing waiting lists. These are needs that are not going to be met in any other way.
“It cannot be right that Salford’s housing supply is only about numbers and that it doesn’t matter what gets built where or for whom.
“In those circumstances, where there is no alternative to meeting the real needs of people, national policy and housing needs must prevail over local policies that seek to restrict development.
“We think the Government has failed to correctly apply its own National Planning Policy Framework in this case.”
Responding to Peel’s bid for a review of the decision, Coun Derek Antrobus, lead member for planning and sustainable development at the council, said: “We are disappointed that Peel have taken this action. We still intend to enhance the protection of this land under our local plans.
“The Secretary of State has found in our favour twice and we expect the court will find in our favour again.”
Peel says there are major deficiencies in Salford’s housing supply, with significant shortages in both affordable homes and family housing and Salford’s housing land supply is dominated by city centre apartments. They say this land supply does not meet the actual needs of various groups, including families with children and people on affordable housing waiting lists.
The Broadoak proposals, say Peel, would help contribute to those unmet needs by proposing predominantly family housing and 30 per cent affordable homes.
The decision to reject the plans for a second time in November followed a long-running legal saga and two public inquiries over the land, a mixture of woods, meadows and open space stretching from near Monton Green across to Worsley Road.
The council said Peel’s plans involved 600 new homes and a smaller development of 165 homes within the Broadoak site. The council originally refused planning permission for the development in November 2013, but Peel appealed the decision and a public inquiry was held.
An inspector said the plan should be thrown out and that decision was subsequently upheld by former secretary of state for local government, Eric Pickles, in 2015. Peel submitted a high court challenge, the council said, but before that could be heard, a separate high court panel ruled a technical element of the inspector’s report was wrong and the 2015 decision was quashed.
The government then said a new inquiry would have to be opened to consider the evidence again.
Peel applied for planning permission to build 165 homes on a smaller part of the site, which was refused by the town hall’s planning panel in July last year, the council said. The latest decision by the government in November followed a second public inquiry.
Coun Antrobus said: “This is the second time the secretary of state has supported the council’s policy to protect our valuable green space.” Coun Derek Antrobus