Decision made on 350-home estate proposed for Leicestershire

A decision has been made on a huge, 350-home estate proposed for a Leicestershire town. Developer Bonnel Homes Ltd submitted a 'screening application' to Blaby District Council (BDC) for land at Keepers Farm, Winchester Road, Blaby - a first step in the planning process.

Bonnel asked BDC via the application whether it would need to carry out an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) on the site. An EIA assesses the effects of the proposal on the environment.

BDC has now concluded that an EIA is not required. In making its decision, BDC said there was no evidence to suggest that the development would cause significant harm to the environment. This means that Bonnel can now proceed to the next stage of the planning application process. However, Blaby Parish Council said it was "disappointed with BDC's decision.

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The parish council said in a statement: "The parish council is disappointed an environmental impact survey isn’t being carried out and think one should be". Countesthorpe Parish Council (CPC), meanwhile, said it strongly recommended that there should be an Environmental Impact Assessment carried out prior to any planning application being submitted by Bonnel.

CPC said that if the development was permitted, there would be "just one field separating Countesthorpe from Blaby". It also said the "cumulative impact of this development", saying that another proposed development of up to 200 homes at Blaby Golf Range, opposite the site in question, "must be assessed". The potential adverse impact of 550 houses in that area was "significant", it added.

BDC's decision notice states the proposed 350-home development would cover a total area of approximately 22 hectares of farmland. There is a group of farm buildings currently on the site, which lies within Blaby, Countesthorpe and Whetstone.

The developer has stated that up to 25 per cent of the homes - up to 88 - would be 'affordable', and that there would also be an 8.47 hectare country park created. The development would include new access off Winchester Road.

Natural England was also consulted on the plan. It said in its response that, on the basis of the materials to be used, that significant effects on nature conservation sites or landscapes were "unlikely".

BDC said it did not consider the impacts of the development to be severe, complex or to affect a wide area or proportion of the population. It added that it did not consider that significant cumulative impacts would arise, either from the proposed development itself, or in combination with other developments in the area.

It did state, however, that the application, if it was approved, would result in the loss of an area of agricultural land, which should be considered as part of the planning application process, although the loss of this level of farmland alone does not require an EIA.

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