Final stage for controversial Derbyshire housing development plan
A plan to seal the controversial development of more than 170 homes in a Derbyshire town has been submitted.
Allison Homes East Midlands has put forward a reserved matters application to Amber Valley Borough Council to finalise the details of plans for 177 homes off Chesterfield Road, Alfreton, on the northern outskirts of the town.
In late 2024, a Government planning inspector approved Gladman’s initial plans for the site following a public inquiry, nearly 500 objections and a rejection from the borough council.
The inspector, William Cooper, overturned the council’s March 2024 decision due to the “most acute national housing crisis in living memory”.
Mr Cooper said there had been 2,000 households on the borough council’s housing register waiting list, with 1,400 in overcrowded or unsuitable accommodation and more than 300 specifying Alfreton as their preferred location.
The 3,000-strong Save Alfreton Countryside campaign group had firmly contested the inquiry, with the fields to be affected representing the “last accessible countryside for the people of Alfreton”.
Campaigners had contested the scheme would see the destruction of a medieval rural footpath and had deep concerns over the historic landscape and neighbouring listed buildings, such as St Martin’s Church and the former Alfreton park.
The 177-home scheme would include 53 homes classified as affordable housing, with the overall breakdown comprising six one-bed homes, 37 two-bed homes, 76 three-bed homes and 58 four-bed homes.
A statement on behalf of Allison Homes, based in Castle Donington, said: “The principle of developing the site for residential use has already been established through the grant of outline planning permission at planning appeal.
“In determining that appeal, the Inspector concluded that the development would result in less than substantial harm at the lower end of the spectrum to the significance of the Church of St Martin, Alfreton Hall and Alfreton Conservation Area, together with moderate harm to the non-designated heritage asset of Alfreton Park.
“The inspector further concluded that the public benefits associated with the development outweighed this identified harm.
“The proposal contributes towards meeting evidenced housing needs within Amber Valley.
“The proposed development creates a natural extension to Alfreton, offering 177 dwellings that complement the existing settlement.”
Allison Homes said the proposed number of affordable housing represents 30 per cent of homes on the site, which is now higher than the required proportion agreed in the new Local Plan – a blueprint for future development in the area – adopted by the council in March, which lowered the threshold in Alfreton to 20 per cent.
If the plan had been submitted and agreed under the new plan, 35 affordable homes would need to be provided, 18 fewer.
During the public inquiry, in October 2024, the legal counsel for the borough, Ned Westaway, said 128 homes had already been earmarked for Alfreton and that was sufficient to meet local need, saying: “We need to build houses but we need to build in the right places.
“The national need for housing does not mean that every site is suitable for development.”
The new Local Plan has earmarked a further 60-home site in Alfreton at Outseats farm, in a bid to meet Government aims to build 7,656 homes by 2040.
A decision on the reserved matters application for Chesterfield Road will be made in the next few months.