Greenbelt plan set for approval
ACONTROVERSIAL application to build homes on greenbelt land in Stockport has been recommended for approval by planning officers.
Seashell Trust, a charity based in Cheadle that provides care and education for profoundly disabled children and young people, is planning to build a £45m ‘national centre of excellence’ to replace its current, outdated campus.
It proposes to fund the project through the sale of land it owns between Wilmslow Road and the A34 at Heald Green, and has applied for planning permission for up to 325 new homes.
However these plans have been met with significant objection from the local community.
Groups such as the Heald Green and Handforth Action Group say they fully support the charity and the work it does, but are concerned about the scale of the development proposed and its impact on the surrounding area.
A statement published on the Save Heald Green Greenbelt Facebook group reads: “In addition to the loss of our highly valued and irreplaceable greenbelt, 325 houses will have an obvious impact on access to local amenities, extra traffic and the resultant decrease in air quality.
“It is clear that Seashell Trust will not close should this application be refused. A number of affordable alternatives are possible, all of which would meet the Trust’s needs and provide a superb new state-of-theart SEND facility.”
Cheadle MP Mary Robinson has also voiced her opposition to the plans, saying she ‘cannot support the proposal to build this large scale development on greenbelt land’.
But Seashell Trust say the sale of the land is crucial to the redevelopment, and they have ‘exhausted every other option’.
Chief executive and principal Mark Geraghty said: “We are very pleased that after rigorous scrutiny the planning experts at Stockport Council have taken the decision to recommend the scheme is approved.
“It has been a long road to get to this point and we believe we have proved how important this scheme is to our children and to Seashell’s future as a leading light in the care of children with extraordinary special needs.
“We understand that using some of our land for housing to help pay for the scheme is a difficult decision, but we have exhausted every other option and we are in desperate need of a new building for our very special children.”
The report by planning officers states: “Having assessed and balanced the cumulative harm against the cumulative benefits of the proposed development above, it is considered that the benefits of the proposed development clearly outweigh the harm to the greenbelt.”
The application was due to be considered at the meeting of the Cheadle Area Committee that took place shortly after the Express went to press last night.