The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
A fourth planning application for Weston has taken the total number of proposed homes to 242 – potentially increasing the village’s total by about one third.
Residents have formed a group to raise concerns and ward district councillor Andrew Woolf insists that Weston needs more services to go hand in hand with the developments.
He said: “I’m not against good quality housing, but it must have the infrastructure with it – that means the schools, doctors around it.”
He added: “We all know that the government says, as a country, we need to keep building houses. Everywhere has to take its fair share, it just happens that a target area is Weston – I don’t think anything is deliberate.”
The latest application for six detached homes in Pinfold Road by Broadgate Homes follows three other proposals being considered by South Holland District Council:
- 131 homes off High Road and adjacent to Pinfold Lane (applicant Mr Gibson)
- 60 one to four-bedroom properties in Dean Close (Seagate Homes)
- 45 homes in Small Drove (Larkfleet Homes)
As part of its application, Broadgate Homes, which is based in Weston Hills, has agreed to a request by Lincolnshire County Council to fund improvements to Pinfold Lane.
The proposed site is next to another earmarked for 131 homes.
Originally, the application by a Mr Gibson was to be for 15 homes running parallel to High Road. However, following pre-application advice and the knowledge that the land was identified for development as part of the South East Lincolnshire Housing Land Availability Assessment, the whole field is now part of a fresh scheme.
A group known as Weston RAID (Residents Against Inappropriate Development) was formed after the Larkfleet plan was submitted last year. The group was part of a recent meeting involving MP John Hayes and representatives from Anglian Water, Highways, the district council’s planning department and Larkfleet.
A group spokesman said there is concern about the density of the new developments and that they do not complement existing properties.
They said: “From the word go it has looked very bleak.
“The planners have their hands tied because they didn’t get their act together and get the Local Plan in place. The developers can pretty much do what they like because there are financial penalties if the planning [permission] doesn’t go through.”
They added: “Weston has historically had sewerage problems and we’re very concerned about the management of surface water drainage.”
The council said the Local Plan has recently been subject to public consultation which resulted in a large number of responses.
It added: “The next stage of progress is currently being configured, but the plan is making good progress.”
And on planning applications not being turned down, the council said: “At present South Holland is unable to demonstrate a five year housing land supply, as required by the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). As a result, we have to consider applications for housing developments favourably, in accordance with the NPPF.”
