Taylor Wimpey and Homes England lodge appeal over 1,100-home scheme refusal

Taylor Wimpey and Homes England have appealed a decision by South Ribble council to turn down their plans for 1,100 homes in the town of Penwortham, Lancashire. 

Reasons for the refusal were “unclear or lacking in explanation”, consultancy Avison Young said in the appeal statement it lodged for the developer and housing agency. The appeal statement said the council’s assertions the applicants had not followed the proper planning approach was “wholly inaccurate”. 

Two applications for outline permission were submitted for the 79 hectare site called Pickering’s Farm on 9 August last year. One for 920 homes and another for 180. 

Both were turned down on 29 November 2021 after officers recommended it was refused for a range of reasons, including that the applicants had failed to demonstrate the proposed development would not have a severe impact on surrounding roads. Officers also said the plans were contrary to policy C1 of the South Ribble local plan, in that they did not give enough detailed phasing information on how the scheme would be delivered. There was also a concern that proposed improvements to a local bridge would not be sufficient for the additional traffic.  

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This is the second time Taylor Wimpey and Homes England have put in a masterplan for the site, the first being submitted in December 2019. South Ribble councillors rejected that plan in September 2020.  

The statement of appeal said: “The appellants have endeavoured to secure approval for the development of this allocated, sustainable strategic site for a number of years now. Regrettably the borough council has been unable to support the delivery of the substantial number of open market and affordable homes at this location, both of which form a key component of the planned housing supply for South Ribble.” The developer and agency had pledged to provide a split of 70% affordable homes and 30% intermediate tenure.   

A spokesperson for Taylor Wimpey and Homes England said: “We have been working closely with South Ribble Borough Council, the local community and other key stakeholders to develop our proposals for Pickering’s Farm and we were disappointed with the refusal of our plans in November last year.

“The site has been allocated for development in South Ribble Borough Council’s Local Plan and we intend to continue our dialogue with the council, and other consultees, to identify the next steps in bringing forward a scheme that meets the needs of the local community.”

Jonathan Noad, director of planning and development at South Ribble Borough Council, said:  “It is the right of any developer to appeal a decision by the planning committee. The appeal has now been registered with the Planning Inspectorate with a planning inquiry due to take place for four weeks starting on Tuesday 23 August where we will defend the council’s decision for refusal.”