Campaigners claim Derbyshire countryside is ‘under attack’ as plans submitted for new housing development

The proposed site of 185 houses in Chesterfield Road, Alfreton. Image from Gladman.

Plans for 185 houses on the outskirts of a Derbyshire town have been submitted – despite campaigners claiming the area is ‘under attack’ again from developers

The plans, from housing developer Gladman, would see 185 houses built on land off Chesterfield Road in Alfreton. If approved by Amber Valley Borough Council, the homes would be built close to St Martin’s Church and Alfreton Hall, sandwiched between Chesterfield Road, Church Street and an area of woodland.

Of the homes, 130 would be open market properties and 55 would be classed as affordable housing.

The planning application does not detail how many parking spots will be provided on the development other than a mix of driveways, garages and on-street parking – outlining that vehicles and roads would not dominate the scheme.

If approved by Amber Valley Borough Council, the homes would be built close to St Martin’s Church and Alfreton Hall, sandwiched between Chesterfield Road, Church Street and an area of woodland. Image: Google

It also does not detail the mix of housing on the site, including any information about what size the proposed homes would be or how many bedrooms they would contain.

A statement submitted with the application says: “The development will take advantage of the surrounding green infrastructure and will reflect the landscape setting to the south of the site.

“To achieve this, the proposed built form will be set back from the Conservation Area and the nearby listed buildings. This will reduce the impact of the proposed built form and will prevent the coalescence of the development with the Conservation Area.”

Meanwhile, a separate document says: “The approval of this application will assist in addressing the persistent problem of inadequate housing supply across the country and will meet the very basic human need of real people in real need of market and affordable housing.

“Significant weight should be given to the delivery of both market and affordable housing, the delivery of housing is a significant benefit.

“There are no technical or environmental impacts that would significantly or demonstrably outweigh the substantial benefits of the proposal.

“The development of the site, as proposed, would be both suitable and sustainable, and there is justification to grant planning permission in accordance with the presumption in favour of sustainable development within Amber Valley. In considering the planning balance, the significant benefits arising from the development outweigh the identified harm.”

Jamie Selby, speaking on behalf of the campaign group Save Alfreton Countryside, previously said about the planned development: “We are aghast at the latest potential intrusion into the much valued open space between Alfreton, Oakerthorpe and Shirland.

“The 185 homes sit just outside of what would have been the boundary for the Alfreton solar farm that was refused by His Majesty’s Planning Inspector in December 22. We feel that many of the reasons the solar farm was refused apply equally in this case.

“The people of Alfreton, Oakerthorpe and Shirland value dearly the space between the settlements, as was evidenced by the record number of objections against the solar farm and proposed residential developments in Oakerthorpe.

“Our countryside, the land we hold so dear, is under attack yet again by developers who have no regard for the local communities who love where they live.”

In December last year, Government Planning Inspector Paul Jackson, following an extensive public inquiry, rejected plans from Kronos Solar for a 185-acre solar farm between Alfreton and Oakerthorpe.