Green light for 40 village homes
A ‘community-led’ social housing scheme bringing 40 new homes to a north Shropshire village has been given the green light.
The plans, for a plot of land off Aspen Grange in Weston Rhyn, are for a block of 18 independent living apartments, 12 houses, 10 bungalows, a community facility and an area of public open space.
The application, by Shropshire Towns and Rural (STAR) Housing, Shropshire Council’s arms-length social housing provider, was designed with input from a steering group including parish councillors and village residents.
A small number of the houses and bungalows will be marketed as shared ownership while the remainder will be affordable rented homes.
The properties will be allocated to people on the council’s waiting list, with priority given to those with a local connection.
The council’s affordable housing team supported the application and said the mix of accommodation reflected current housing needs in the area.
There were no objections to the application from members of the public.
A report from planning officer Mark Perry says: “The clear community involvement is likely to have had a clear impact on the lack of objections to the scheme when compared to the previous applications which have been submitted for this site.”
Officers acknowledged that the proposed 40 properties was “substantially over and above” the allocation for 25 homes on the site as set out in the council’s development plan.
But the report says: “However, this scheme proposes a mix of unit types that are smaller in terms of bedrooms than would normally be expected on an open market scheme.”
The apartments and six of the bungalows, which are to be built specifically for older occupants, will have shared courtyard gardens and parking, while the other bungalows and houses will have their own.
Mr Perry’s report concludes: “The site is a site within the adopted development boundary for Weston Rhyn and is a site allocated for housing development in the… development plan.
“The site has also been previously granted outline permission. It is therefore accepted that the site is in a sustainable location, on the edge of the existing built development, where it benefits from the facilities, services and infrastructure offered by the village and will provide additional housing supply in accordance with national planning policy priorities.
“The scheme proposes the creation of a unique community which will contribute towards meeting a housing need in the local area.
“Furthermore, the development will provide affordable dwellings… the provision of a community facility and infrastructure provision… and will not result in significant loss of agricultural land, harm to protected species and no detrimental impact upon the amenities of neighbouring occupiers.”
Meanwhile a separate application for the site by a different developer is yet to be determined. That scheme mirrors previous plans for 32 houses, for which planning permission granted in 2017 but lapsed earlier this year.
