By Andrew Topping, Local Democracy Reporter
A major 400-home development is due before councillors months after its developer changed major conditions on its initial planning consent.
Developer Barratt & David Wilson Homes will bring its plans, at Stonebridge Lane in Warsop, before council planners next week to move the large development forward.
It was last considered by Mansfield District Council’s planning committee in August last year, when some conditions enforced on the plans at outline stage were amended.
Under the latest proposals, the developer has 0asked to move the rear gardens of some properties directly onto the five-metre buffer zone to the west of the development site.
This would back onto the nearby Sookholme Brook site of special scientific importance (SSSI) – changes that were supported by Natural England following consultation.
The developer also asked to alter its drainage proposals by amending the steepness of proposed flood banks, as well as increasing the depth of drainage ponds from one to three metres.
This was done, the company said at the time, following a detailed assessment after discovering the site had “poorer infiltration rates” than originally thought when approved in 2018.
But the August proposals were met with criticism by both councillors on the planning committee and members of the public in attendance.
Concerns were heard from the Sherwood Forest Friends of the Earth group, noting how a surface water drainage plan on a development this size “needs to be given time for consideration”.
Councillor Andy Burgin (Lab), who represents the Warsop Carrs area where the development will be built, also spoke out against the plans.
However, Barratt & David Wilson Homes told the August committee the amendments were “essential” in delivering the scheme and would not “undermine” conditions already set out by planners.
The August committee approved the developer’s request after a tied vote saw committee chairman Cllr Bill Drewett (Mans Ind) cast a deciding vote in favour of the changes.
Now the developer is bringing the development before councillors to seek final approval for many aspects of the 400-home scheme.
The plans were initially planned for debate at the September committee before being temporarily withdrawn and deferred until this month.
Documents due to be reviewed by the committee on Monday (January 17) outline the developer’s plans for the site’s layout, scale, appearance and landscaping.
The developer’s design and access statement confirms the homes would be accessed via two separate entry points on Stonebridge Lane, as well as via nearby Sookholme Lane for the southern section of development.
It contains a mixture of properties ranging from one-bedroom flats to five-bedroom detached homes, with 20 per cent of the homes to be marketed as ‘affordable’.
Thirty-three letters of objection have been received for the current proposals, raising concerns over flooding, a lack of local amenities, overdevelopment, the impact on the Sookholme SSSI, and the impact of the Vale Road/A60 junction.
But councillors will be recommended to approve the development at ‘reserved matters stage’ when the committee meets next week.
The report states: “The site is considered to represent a deliverable residential development scheme within a suitable and sustainable location for residential development.
“The development proposals can deliver significant benefits to the district, alongside making a significant contribution to Mansfield District Council’s housing requirements over the next nine years.”
