Homes proposed on Walberton development labelled an 'abomination'

Arun District Council’s Planning Committee refused David Wilson Homes’ proposal for 131 homes at land west of Tye Lane, Walberton, on Wednesday (30 November).

The developer already has ‘outline permission’ – or permission in principle – to build the homes but requires planning permission for further details including scale and layout.

The homes were previously refused by ADC but were then allowed on appeal by a planning inspector on the condition that the homes ‘should not exceed two storeys in height’ and should be ‘single storey to the southern boundary’.

Only 11 bungalows are included in the plans but some of them have ‘rooms in the roof’ and the rest of the homes have two to four bedrooms.

A total of 30 per cent are affordable.

Planning officers had recommended the plans for approval but members of the Planning Committee disagreed.

Martin Lury (LDem, Bersted) said the homes were an ‘abomination’ and ‘go completely against what the inspector wanted’.

Billy Blanchard-Cooper (LDem, Brookfield) said his ‘heart sank’ when he saw that many of the homes were not ‘one floor bungalows’.

Dawn Appleton, a planning agent with Henry Adams, said that consultation had taken place with local residents and a ‘green buffer’ would be planted around the edge of the site in response.

Ms Appleton said properties on the south side would be ‘single storey dwellings’ and would be built from ‘locally distinctive materials’. She added that the homes would feature sustainability benefits and increase biodiversity.

But the Planning Committee voted unanimously to refuse the application despite encouragement from the council’s legal team to defer it instead so further negotiations could take place.

Ricky Bower (Con, East Preston) ‘could not see what there was to negotiate’ and called the designs ‘inappropriate for the locality’.

As a result, the committee decided to refuse the homes as they could significantly harm the character and appearance of the area’.

More details about the plans can be found on Arun District Council council’s planning portal using the reference code: WA/86/22/RES.