New Forest District Council refuses application by Cicero Estates for 82-home development at Lower Pennington Lane

HUGELY unpopular plans for 82 homes in Pennington have been refused by New Forest District Council after members went against officer advice to approve.

Developer Cicero Estates wanted to create a mixture of two, three and four-bed homes – 50% of which would be affordable – on land off Lower Pennington Lane.

As reported by the A&T, the proposed scheme had sparked hundreds of objections – among them from the town council, New Forest West MP Sir Desmond Swayne, local residents group Pennington and Lymington Lane Society (Palls) and conservation group the Lymington Society, as well as nearby Oakhaven Hospice, which said it would suffer “significant long-term complications” as a result.

There were also more than 50 letters in support.

The application site forms the majority of Strategic Site 6 in NFDC’s Local Plan – a keystone document which lists 18 sites for development with thousands of houses until 2036. The eight-hectare plot is allocated for at least 100 homes.

An officers’ report to the planning committee recommending approval said there was “a clear identified need for both open market and affordable housing of all sizes in the district”.

However, at a meeting of the planning committee today (Wednesday), members voted against the scheme six to one, with one abstention.

Proposing the refusal was Cllr Richard Frampton, on the grounds of density. He said: “Slightly lower numbers would mean less pressure on the lanes; it would fit better with the environment and could enhance the local distinctiveness.

“This is an absolute case whereby it does not contribute positively to the local distinctiveness, quality of life, or enhance the character and identity of the locality because it is too dense for the surrounding area.”

Cllr Malcolm Wade said he was concerned the amount of affordable homes could later be reduced due to viability, which had been seen in previous planning applications.

He added an application to the New Forest National Park Authority for permission to create a new access on land between Lower Pennington Lane and Ridgeway Lane, set to be discussed next week, made the situation “uncomfortable”.

He said: “At the moment, we haven’t even got a proper road into it. Who knows, the national park may vote against it. There are so many holes, so many challenges, so many questions left.

“There’s too many issues, with Oakhaven, the residents, the density, the infrastructure – it’s not building houses at any cost.”

As reported in the A&T, concerns from locals included highway safety and increased traffic on roads which are described as narrow, without pavements and bordered by ditches.

There were also fears that any widening or straightening of Lower Pennington Lane or Ridgeway Lane would impact the rural character of the area.

Residents also argued the homes would not meet the needs of young people and families, would impact adversely on wildlife, and increase the risk of flooding in neighbouring properties.

Lymington and Pennington Town Council was concerned about the impact on Oakhaven, the “cramped” social housing, the risk of local roads becoming a rat run, and the loss of protected trees.

Some positive comments were received, however, with residents welcoming a “much-needed investment in local infrastructure” and affordable homes.

Speaking at the meeting, mayor of Lymington and Pennington, Cllr Jack Davies, urged members to reject the application, for which he said he had “serious concerns”, while Cllr Jacqui England said the tranquillity of the area would be “decimated” by the development.

Adam Bennet of Ken Parke Planning Consultants told the meeting the properties were “needed” in the area and “careful consideration” had been given to neighbouring properties.

He added: “There are no objections from any technical consultees; Hampshire County Council highways are content the development will result in no harm to highways safety and no negative impact to the lanes or broader highway network.

“The development will make a significant contribution to local affordable and market supply and there are clear and significant public benefits and overriding reasons why this should be granted.”

Local resident Susan Hood also spoke in favour of the scheme, telling members homes were “desperately needed” in the area.

Oakhaven’s CEO Andrew Ryde told the A&T he was “very pleased” with the result, adding: “Our main concern has remained around the ownership of three areas of land, protecting the long-term security of the hospice.

“Emails from Cicero stated that the buffer strip, car park and land to the south of Oakhaven will be gifted to the hospice to protect privacy, tranquillity and safety, and therefore comply with policy.

“It is our understanding that in the latest application proposed, none of the land is gifted to the hospice, with it all coming under management company control. We don’t understand this lack of consistency. We do not have faith in the long-term interests of the hospice being managed effectively by a management company and asked that the committee make a requirement that the three areas of land concerned have ownership transferred to the hospice.”

He added: “We share the concerns of the community about the potential for the development to form a rat run, its general inappropriateness as a development site – particularly its intrusion into the national park that can only set an irretrievable precedent for future applications – [and] we are therefore pleased with the refusal to grant permission for this application. It is essential that the privacy, tranquillity and safety of our staff, patients, volunteers and visitors are protected in the long term.”

The decision was also welcomed by the Lymington Society, whose chair Don Mackenzie told the A&T: “We are extremely grateful to the councillors on the planning committee, who agree that with so many major potential problems with this site it should be refused.

“We hope that the national park authority will now also refuse the parallel application for the access into the site from the local lanes, and for the totally unnecessary inclusion of a flood prevention system for the site which has been proposed to be in the national park rather than on the site itself.”

He added: “Hopefully, the developers will now bring forward a smaller development which can bring much-needed homes but without the damage to the amenity of this important green belt site on the edge of the internationally protected environments nearby.”

The chair of Pennington and Lymington Lane Society (Palls), Bruce Tindall, told the A&T he was “very delighted” with the decision and was thankful for the “unswerving support” members made to voice their objection.

He added: “We would also like to thank our local councillors, especially Cllr Jack Davies and Cllr Jacqui England who both spoke at the meeting this morning, but also all the councillors at NFDC who voted to reject this application.

“This is not over and the campaign will continue.”