Developer refused permission for homes

PLANS for 65 new homes in Sonning Common have been refused.

South Oxfordshire District Council has rejected an amended application by Bewley Homes to develop Lea Meadow, near the Herb Farm, off Peppard Road.

In his decision notice, the council’s head of planning Adrian Duffield said: “The application site is not allocated for development in a development plan, including any adopted neighbourhood plan, is not considered an infill site within the built up limits of the settlement and does not accord with the district’s clear strategy for growth and necessary infrastructure.

“The proposal would amount to an unwarranted extension and encroachment into the adjacent countryside.”

Planning officer Peter Brampton, who had recommended refusal, said: “It is acknowledged the proposal will provide some benefits. These include a boost in housing supply and weight is given to the provision of affordable housing on site, given the district-wide need for this type of housing.



“It is also acknowledged that the development will bring marginal benefits in the shape of economic investment and job opportunities in the short term through the construction phases and in the longer term through additional consumer spending in Sonning Common and the surrounding area.

“However, the scheme proposes unwarranted develop- ment on an unallocated greenfield site.

“There is no shortfall in the five-year supply of housing land in the rest of the district and there is no mechanism in place to secure affordable housing and other necessary infrastructure requirements.

“Furthermore, the decision on where large scale housing development should take place should be properly planned through the plan-making process. As such, the negative impacts of this development outweigh the positive benefits it would bring.”

Lea Meadow is earmarked for 60 homes in the latest draft of the Sonning Common neighbourhood plan.