95 new homes ‘too much’ for villages, say residents
CONCERN OVER PLANS, BUT DEVELOPERS HAVE PLEDGED IMPROVEMENTS TO AREA
CONCERNS have been raised about the impact of a planned 95-home housing development close to a “small village” in Nottinghamshire.
Plans have been submitted to build the development in land west of Rufford Colliery Lane, close to the A617 in Rainworth.
The proposals, put forward by company Romo Holdings, would mean the 95 properties being built on land previously been set aside for employment use.
But previous planning permission for employment has expired, with developers now looking to turn the land into houses.
Under the plans, a new access road would be created off the busy A617 dual carriageway, introducing a fourth section to the threeway traffic lights midway up Rainworth bypass.
Houses would then be introduced on the land, and a nearby public footpath leading into Rainworth town centre retained for pedestrians.
At this stage it is unclear how many bedrooms each home would have, but developers have pledged to make 30 per- cent of the houses “affordable”.
However, concerns have been raised by people in the village about the impact it may have on their area.
Population estimates suggest around 8,000 people live in Rainworth, with the village having just a handful of local amenities.
And the move comes as separate plans for more than 100 homes in nearby Blidworth come to fruition, including an 81-home development off New Lane.
Jayne Snow, 62, who was walking nearby Kirklington Road in Rainworth, questioned whether both villages have “capacity” for all the new houses.
“I’m all for more houses because we need to be able to house everyone, and not have people living on the street,” she told the Post.
“But Rainworth is only a small village as it is.
“When you look at what’s happening in Blidworth with all those houses, these villages have not got capacity for even more homes.
“Almost 100 houses is too much, there’s only a few small shops in the Tesco and Co-op, and schools and doctors are at capacity.”
Allan Conway, 59, who was out with his dog near the development site, agreed with concerns over infrastructure. “With anything like this my first concern is infrastructure we’ve already got in place,” he said.
“We have the Co-op, Tesco and Nisa but they are not very big, and one secondary school which covers the wider area.
“With Blidworth getting 100-odd homes and then there’s these, can Joseph Whitaker take the potential of hundreds more children?
“Both villages aren’t big enough. Obviously we generally do need more houses, but they need to be affordable and in the right place.”
Developers behind the scheme launched a public consultation on the development in March, which ran until midway through last month.
During the consultation, concerns were also raised about wildlife protection, and how the access road off the A617 will impact Rainworth village.
Responding to concerns, Romo says it will pledge improvements to the area as part of Section 106 developers funding.
The company added: “The [development] is within comfortable walking and cycling distance of local facilities and services, including a small supermarket, secondary school, primary school, GP surgery and a pub.
“The development will not be served by an access directly to Kirklington Road with new access infrastructure proposed off the A617.
“Contributions will be secured through a S106 Agreement [in regards to improvements for local infrastructure].”
Further information on the development can be found on the Newark and Sherwood District Council planning portal.
There’s only a few small shops in the Tesco and Co-op, and schools and doctors are at capacity.
Jayne Snow