Derbyshire village chapel to become homes despite neighbourhood objections

The application for the Methodist Church on Alfreton Road, Westhouses to Bolsover District Council triggered several concerns. Blackwell Parish Council said additional residential parking would cause further obstruction on an already congested road, nearby residents would have increased difficulty in exiting their driveways and additional windows in the plan overlooking neighbouring properties would impact on their privacy.

Steve and Alison Morley of Chapel Farm, Alfreton Road, pointed out the church was on a blind bend with double yellow lines painted on both sides of the road that indicate no parking and with no vehicle access. They commented: “There is a lot of construction involved in the proposed plans. A lot of deliveries, possible skips required for waste and a lot of trades people with vehicles and equipment. Given the lack of access to the chapel and parking restrictions this will cause a lot of disruption in our small village.”

Annie Adlington, of Alfreton Road, said there were windows in the extension to the chapel that overlook her house and garden. She further stated that the ground level of the property was higher than on her side which enabled her home to be overlooked. “It is where our conservatory is and therefore people would be able to stare straight into this and this would be a big invasion of privacy for us,” she commented.

The application by Mohamed Tareq Fayez Mohamed Moustafa for change of use was approved with conditions including that the development must be started within three years and that eight windows must be obscure glazed.

Westhouses Methodist Church was sold at auction for £111,000 in late 2022. The chapel closed as a place of worship in 2020.