Nantwich councillors have spoken out against a planning appeal ruling which will see another 40 homes built on green land.
Cllrs Andrew Martin and Peter Groves say they are “disappointed” at a planning inspector’s decision to uphold Wainhomes Ltd’s appeal.
The developer has now been given permission to build up to 40 houses on land to the rear of 144 Audlem Road, Nantwich, and build an access road from Audlem Road to the site.
But in a statement, the Nantwich South and Stapeley councillors said: “It appears that scant regard has been given to both the highways issues and the housing being positioned next to a prominent local school.”
They feel safety was a priority and they had both worked hard to get speed limits reduced and crossings in place.
The decision, they claim, illustrates a “worrying inconsistency of the Planning Inspectorate”.
“This inspector quotes against a 1,350 homes target, which goes against most of the other appeals which have used a homes target of 1,150,” they said.
“It seems to us that as the council has a five-year supply at 1,150, as it has always stated, then the developers have simply persuaded the inspector to move the goal posts.
“We will be speaking with the Leader of the Council to ensure he redoubles his efforts on the Local Plan which goes for inspection in September and that the five-year housing supply position continues to be robust.”
A spokesman for Cheshire East Council also accused the planning inspectorate of “continually moving” the goalposts.
“The authority is still digesting the Inspector’s results and the impact this will have on Nantwich as the council continues to fight its corner on housing,” he said.
“This is an example of the goalposts continually moving and the difficulty this authority, and scores of other authorities across the country, have in providing housing provision targets.
“The inspectors rely on a snap shot of housing provision which is constantly being update and so this makes the process a very complicated and difficult task for any planning team.
“Current national planning policy places a great deal of weight on boosting house building where possible which places green belt authorities under an enormous amount of pressure.
“The issue of supply appears to be a dominating factor in appeals.
“Even though the council considers it does have its 5-year supply and is awaiting confirmation of this, the weight placed by the Planning Inspectorate on building more homes is outweighing reasons for not building homes.
“This council continues to put residents first and fight to stop unwanted and unsustainable housing.”
It is truly disgraceful the amount of homes that have been built in nantwich in recent years it is affecting local residents lives to the extent that there health is being compromised due to high traffic volumes and no upgraded facilities for existing people also its is time the council looked beyond the revenue this I’ll bring to there coffers they have ruined this market town feel so sorry for audlem village
Is being “disappointed” going to make any difference? Probably not would be my guess. More and more of Nantwich and the surrounding areas are disappearing under new building work. The aim, presumably, is to ensure that there are no green spaces left and that plenty of money is made by the developers. How about Nantwich Town Councillors finding a way of getting involved in these plans at a time and in a way which will make a difference. Perhaps that’s too much to expect – they seem to be a wishy-washy bunch.
I agree totally another example of greedy Cheshire east council no thought for local people and there needs and concerns