Housing estate plan backed after successful appeal

The applicants announced their intention to appeal against the refusal in August

A housing estate featuring up to 48 properties can be built after an appeal against a refusal was successful.

The development, in Gaulby Road, Billesdon, was refused by Harborough District Council's planning committee in May last year over concerns regarding its "harmful" scale and layout.

At the time, councillors ruled the scheme did not "respect the existing form and character" of the area, and would not integrate well with existing buildings, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Church Farm Billesdon Ltd lodged an appeal against the council's decision in August, which was granted by the Planning Inspectorate.

In its appeal, the applicant said it "strongly contested the reason for refusal" and "firmly believed that the evidence presented demonstrated that planning permission should have been granted".

Claiming the estate would offer a "range of benefits" that were "sufficient to outweigh the limited harm resulting from the perceived impact stated by the council", the applicant also said the appeal "drew attention to the deficiencies in the way in which the members of the council's planning committee assessed the proposal".

The Planning Inspectorate backed the applicant and granted outline planning permission – meaning the development was accepted in principle, with the details to be worked out at a later stage – for up to 48 homes.

Church Farm Billesdon has indicated that 30 of the properties will be self-build/custom built homes, and 18 will be affordable homes for first-time buyers.

In making its decision to approve the appeal, the Planning Inspectorate set out several conditions, including a traffic management plan to ensure highway safety, and an environmental management plans to control the impacts of the construction phase on biodiversity and flood risk.