Full steam ahead for new homes on old Ludlow railway

The 20 houses and six flats have been approved for the Shropshire Building Supplies site off New Road, Ludlow, which was once a railway sidings dating back to the 19th century.

The Victorian rail shed that still stands there is planned to become flats and act as the centrepiece of the development.

Outline permission was granted for the scheme by planning officers without going before Shropshire Council's south planning committee.

The houses are the first to be given permission of up to 335 homes currently being considered for the streets north of Ludlow town centre – including 80 on the former brickworks on nearby Fishmore Road, 20 at the former Whittles bus depot next to it, and a 215-home estate at the top of Bromfield Road which was refused permission by Shropshire Council, but is awaiting an appeal to the Planning Inspectorate.

Along with recently granted plans for a petrol station on the corner of Bromfield Road and Coronation Avenue at Ludlow's northern gateway, the area could be set for a transformation in the coming years.

The New Road houses only received a handful of objections from neighbours, with the main concern being road access.

Andy Boddington, Shropshire Councillor for Ludlow North, said he was in favour of the plans, but had some reservations.

"I am disappointed that it does not include a mini-roundabout to slow traffic and increase safety at the site's entrance on to New Road," he said.

"Planners say there is no room for a roundabout but I rather feel one could have been squeezed in."

He said he also hoped a small railway worker's hut in the far corner of site would be looked after.

"This is not a listed building but it is a small piece of our heritage. I hope it can be preserved and adopted by the future residents of the site," he said.

A report by Penny Stephan for consultants Les Stephan Planning says the converted engine shed building will have two rows of homes laid out at right angles to it.

She said: "The engine shed is very basic in its form, both structurally and architecturally.

"Nevertheless, it is a fine example of the quality of workmanship put into structures at this time and provides historic reference to the importance of the railway in Ludlow and Shropshire as a whole.

"It was therefore paramount that the building not only needed to be retained, but to become a focal point for the entire development."

Shropshire Building Supplies, which has operated at the site for 10 years, is expected to find a new base in the Ludlow area, with more storage and car parking space.