Homes in countryside around Derbyshire village unanimously rejected

People were concerned about traffic, flooding and the impact on the beautiful scenery

Councillors have unanimously rejected plans for new homes in the countryside around a Derbyshire village. At a Derbyshire Dales District Council meeting on Tuesday night (October 8) plans from Mrs C Potter for 18 homes off Clifton Road, Clifton, south-west of Ashbourne, were rejected.

District council planning officials had recommended refusal due to concerns over the impact the scheme would have on the surrounding landscape and character of the village. There were more than 70 objections from opposing residents due to highways safety issues, impact on the countryside and the risk of flooding.

The road past the site was dubbed “extremely dangerous” for both motorists and pedestrians, with residents concerned over the safety of children who may move into homes on the site with their families. Cllr Graham Elliott, on behalf of Clifton Parish Council, said the land was outside the settlement boundary of the village and would “create an urban development in the countryside”, reducing the gap between Clifton and Ashbourne.

He said there are two additional homes planned for the village in the district council’s Local Plan – a future development blueprint. Cllr Elliot said the scheme would “severely impact the character and appearance of the green fields and open countryside”.

Anthony Jones, who has lived in Doles Lane opposite the site for more than 30 years, said the A515 past the site was “one of the most dangerous roads in Derbyshire” and had witnessed a “considerable increase” in vehicle traffic. One study by residents had clocked 1,055 vehicles going past the village in one hour, including 134 HGVs.

Mr Jones said there had been two fatal accidents in the past six years and claimed the proposed new access would lead to an increase in tail-end collisions. He said there were no dedicated bus routes serving Clifton and that it did not have any shops, making the village unsustainable due to the reliability on car travel.

John Griffiths, a long-term resident in the village, said: “If approved it could lead to Clifton being nothing other than a suburb of Ashbourne.” He said there were just three further fields between the site and Ashbourne and that the housing was “neither wanted or needed”.

Ron Taylor, who has lived near the site for 26 years, said the village’s sewage network “cannot cope at times of heavy rain, which are becoming more and more frequent”. He said: “There is no way it can cope with the addition of 18 further properties.”

Lydia Clare, on behalf of the applicant, said the plans had been revised “to meet community expectations”, and would provide social housing and a “safe connection to the village” which would be “in keeping with the character of the village” and “preserve the village’s unique charm”. David Brakewell, agent for the applicant, said concerns regarding trees, highways and biodiversity had been resolved, and that the applicant was willing to pay all contributions owed – totalling £85,000 – to counter the impact of the scheme.

He said the site was “clearly outside of the village boundary but it does lie alongside the boundary”, and that there was “clearly a deficit of housing locally”. Council officials said the site “isn’t organic”, would be “detached from the village”, and include mostly larger houses, would “encroach on the countryside” and would not be sustainable.

Cllr Lucy Peacock told the meeting: “I am not against building on this field in principle, we do need housing. If this proposal had more smaller housing on it, the ones we need i possibly would be inclined to agree to it.”

Cllr David Burton said he was “very uncomfortable” with the plans, and questioned how the “unique charm” of the village would be improved by the scheme. Cllr Neil Buttle said he was “dubious” about how smaller homes would be better, because that would likely mean more young families with children who would need “bussing” around, making it more “unsustainable”.

Cllr Peter Slack said the field was “quite acceptable to build on but it is a non-starter because of the highways situation”. He said: “This road is terribly, terribly dangerous. Vehicles come down there at probably over 70mph, great HGVs. It is a bit disconcerting to walk down on a small footpath. The big wagons are really motoring.”

Cllr Slack said the site was “ideal” for smaller homes, saying: “We are terribly, terribly short of small homes for families.” Councillors were told that objections on highways, flooding and drainage could not be used as reasons to reject the plans due to a lack of opposition from Severn Trent and Derbyshire County Council – whose flood team had not responded..

Cllr Peter Dobbs said there were already 450 homes within five miles with planning permission, saying : “We don’t desperately need these 18.” Cllr Stuart Lees said there was a need to maintain the gap between Ashbourne and Clifton.

Recommending refusal, officers had written: “The proposed is encroaching in the open countryside location and harmful to the local landscape’s intrinsic character and distinctiveness and would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits of housing provision. The proposal therefore would not constitute a sustainable form of development.”

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