Cheshire East expresses dismay at government planning decision

Cheshire East Council has issued a stinging open letter to the housing secretary, strongly criticising his decision to grant a planning appeal in the borough.

The council has formally written to Robert Jenrick, expressing ‘dismay’ at his ruling to permit the development of up to 189 homes at Stapeley, near Nantwich.

The letter says the decision is a ‘significant blow’ to public confidence in the planning system, ‘undermines the principles of effective plan making’ and will ‘likely lead to a further scramble for developers to seek permission for other unplanned sites’.

It comes after another local authority, Horsham District Council announced it is taking legal advice on government plans to almost double the number of new homes built locally over the next decade.

‘Cheshire East has embraced the need to deliver appropriate level of housing across the borough with a Local Plan target of 36,000 homes over the plan period to 2030 – which is well over household projections for the area,’ the letter states.

‘For the last two years, Cheshire East has seen more than 3,000 housing completions – the highest figures ever recorded in Cheshire East. It puts the borough among the highest-performing councils for house building investment.

‘This council has a very robust housing land supply and is on target to deliver that housing in a planned and sustainable manner by also bringing forward the delivery of supporting infrastructure in accordance with our adopted Local Plan Strategy.

‘We are, therefore, dismayed by your decision to allow the planning appeal at Stapeley, despite the clear conflict with development plan policies on the grounds that it delivers more housing,’ the letter adds.

‘Many thousands of Cheshire East residents have engaged in the Local Plan process over many years and have also been involved in the development of more than 30 neighbourhood plans across the borough. Your decision to place such significant weight on the delivery of housing undermines the principles of effective plan making.’

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