Revised plan submitted to BCP Council by Pennyfarthing Homes for housing development at Steamer Point, Christchurch

A REVISED plan for a derelict clifftop site near a nature reserve has been welcomed by residents.

Pennyfarthing Homes had a previous scheme for 21 homes and flats at Steamer Point in Christchurch refused by BCP Council over concerns about “massing” and “unacceptable impact”. An earlier plan for 26 homes and flats was turned down on appeal in 2022.

Now the company has submitted a plan to build 10 “bespoke contemporary” detached homes with car parking and landscaping.

In its application the developer says it wants to “breathe new life” into the derelict brownfield site which has become a hotspot for crime and vandalism.

A former Maritime Coastguard Agency training facility, there have been several attempts to develop the site with many raising objections from local residents.

But the new plan by Pennyfarthing seems to have found favour among some locals, with one saying: “Having been involved in providing crime prevention advice for the existing buildings, my opinion is that this development cannot happen quickly enough.”

Another said: “I fully support this application, in which the developer has addressed all of the points highlighted on previous unsuitable schemes.

“Siting the homes in place of the existing derelict buildings result in a close match of bulk and mass. Low-level lighting will address previous concerns over light pollution affecting wildlife. The design of the homes will fit sympathetically within the wooded landscape. Creating family homes will align to the draft BCP Local Plan for housing stock.”

In a planning statement by Luken Beck on behalf of Pennyfarthing, the company says the development will provide ‘visual interest to the sea” adding: “The design of these homes respects the immediate wooded context and adds to the architectural richness and variety evident within the area and will appear unimposing and respectful to its surroundings.

“The pre-application response was supportive of a contemporary design, particularly as examples of similar contemporary dwellings can be found in the locality.”

It says the “landscape led scheme” has homes that “have been carefully positioned within the site to ensure the majority of existing trees and soft landscaping can be retained.”

It says the two homes nearest the entrance to the development are “two storeys in scale and homes further into the site comprise a podium to the top floor, creating a gradual increase in height as the dwellings move away from the site entrance, whilst remaining subservient to the cliffs”.

Four of the dwellings will front the clifftop and include an “inset top floor and a flat roof to reduce their perceived massing”.

In summary Luken Beck say the “scale has significantly decreased from that of the dismissed appeal, including the removal of the block of flats, providing a much looser grain and scale of development more appropriate for the site having regard to the existing location of the substantial buildings.”

It says changes to the proposal provides a “marked improvement to the appeal scheme” and overcomes “inspector and officer concerns regarding bulk and massing of buildings”.

It says the new design “blends seamlessly with the site’s parameters creating a spacious environment that assimilates well with the surrounding verdant and sylvan setting”.

The company says the existing cliff and sea defences have “shown little impact from erosion, or deterioration, since the site was first inspected in 2014”. It also says the site “benefits from the protection offered by Hengistbury Head.”

Ben Arnold, land and planning director of Pennyfarthing, said: “We are pleased that our application for the Steamer Point site is now live, with the council and out for consultation.

“We hope that the local community will share our view that this scheme does justice to the site and takes the opportunity to deliver high-quality housing and the long-anticipated redevelopment of this brownfield site.”