Officers recommend approval for 175-homes plan for Wem again

Planning officers are again recommending that a controversial housing application should be approved.

Bellway Homes' outline proposal for 175 homes in Wem was deferred in July so that concerns raised by Northern Planning Committee members could be addressed.

The scheme is on land between Aston Road and Church Lane, with the site made up of relatively agricultural fields surrounded by hedgerows.

It is outside the town's settlement boundary, and what is considered 'countryside'. However, because Shropshire Council does not have a five-year land supply, it was recommended that the committee should grant the application when it met on July 21.

The chair of the committee, Councillor Julian Dean (Greens, Porthill), said he struggled to see how that corner of Wem is suitable for development, given the scale of houses being proposed.

He added that achieving a proper pavement "could be tricky" and asked if that could be achieved at the reserved matters stage that would be acceptable to Travel England.

Planning officer, Andrew Huntley said that Travel England is not a statutory consultee, and only provide guidance.

"In historic towns and villages, you're not going to get two-metre wide pathways and cycleways everywhere," he said.

"There's got to be a balance in what is physically achievable. And we have to look at a wider planning balance as well. There are physical constraints that we have to accept."

Councillor Ben Jephcott (Lib Dems, Bagley) proposed the committee reject it on the grounds of access.

"I really do not think it is sufficient and does not meet the requirements that we expect," he said.

"It will have a severe impact on local safety."

However, development manager, Charlotte Morrison, said that, while there is "a lot more work to do", what the committee is being asked is to consider, in principle, an outline application.

She added that a rejection won't be defensible if the developer appealed. Therefore, she used her powers to defer the application.

The committee will again consider it next Tuesday (September 22).

A report says that since members last met, the Government has published a new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). However, officers say that it does not fundamentally change the planning balance, or recommendation that planning permission should be granted.

The presumption in favour of development still prevails despite the loss of agricultural land, adds the report.

It says: "Crucially, the fact that the site directly abuts the existing settlement significantly reduces the landscape and spatial harm normally associated with greenfield developments. It allows the proposal to function as a natural, sustainable extension of the town or village rather than a detached intrusion into the open countryside.

"When assessed against the policies of the Framework as a whole, the collective adverse impacts do not significantly and demonstrably outweigh the wide-ranging public benefits of securing a robust mix of market housing, a 20 per cent affordable housing (over-delivery), optimised active travel links, and high-tier ecological net gains. The presumption in favour of sustainable development is clearly maintained."

Officers therefore recommend that planning permission should be granted subject to planning conditions being agreed. There should also be a Section 106 that secures the on-site affordable housing, off-site active travel infrastructure, a 30-year Biodiversity Net Gain management plan, and any other necessary planning provisions.

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