Government overturns planning refusal

The site is next to the main road between Sandbach and Crewe

Plans to build 160 homes in Sandbach have been given the green light after a developer successfully appealed against a council decision.

Cheshire East Council rejected the scheme off Old Mill Road in 2022 on the basis it did not create a "high quality, beautiful and sustainable place".

A planning inspector recommended the scheme be approved and the local government minister has now agreed and granted permission.

Cheshire East Council said the decision was disappointing and it would study the reasons behind it.

The proposals were refused by the council in 2022

The proposal from Muller Property Group is for the reserved matters of appearance, landscaping and layout for 160 properties with car parking and public space on a 7.21 hectare (17.8 acre) site east of the A534 in Sandbach.

Various schemes have been proposed for the site over the years.

A plan for 200 homes was approved on appeal in 2014, and outline planning permission for 200 homes was granted in 2017.

But the reserved matters application relating to the 2017 application was refused by the council in 2022.

Further applications on the site include plans for a care home and 85 homes on part of the site, which was granted on appeal in 2020, and a scheme for a supermarket, petrol station and 85 homes, which was refused on appeal in 2020.

Local government minister Simon Hoare, on behalf of levelling up, housing and communities secretary Micheal Gove, said he agreed with the planning inspector’s view that many aspects of the layout of the scheme were "entirely satisfactory and will create an attractive environment".

At the inquiry, Cheshire East Council said the scheme had “been insufficiently thought through, with consequent harmful effects on the character and appearance of the area”, the inspector’s report said.

The applicant argued the council had placed "great reliance" on the illustrative layout which was an "unrealistic approach as it was only an illustration of how a scheme might come forward", the report added.

The minister found the scheme was in accordance with local development plans and granted reserved matters approval.

Cheshire East Council has six weeks to challenge the decision.