Plan for 36 new homes in Northumberland village gets the green light

Outline planning permission for 40 homes on a greenfield site south of Lightpipe Farm was granted on appeal in 2019.

But Cussins (North East) Ltd submitted a scaled back reserved matters application to Northumberland County Council last summer.

That application detailing the proposed access, layout, scale, appearance and landscaping arrangements has now been given the green light by planning officers using delegated powers.

Longframlington Parish Council gave its support, with one letter of objection citing concerns about road noise.

Tony Lowe, senior planning officer, reported: “The principle of the development has been established with the outline planning permission for the site.

“Based on this and the current reserved matters application which covers all matters, the proposal is considered acceptable.”

A pair of two-bedroom dwellings are planned along with eight three-bedroom homes, 16 four-bedroom properties and 10 five-bedroom homes.

The scheme includes six affordable homes.

It also includes a large area of green space at the centre of the development.

The scheme includes the formalising of the existing public right of way, along the southern part of the estate road/ footpath and connecting to woods along the A697 to the south and the open ground to the north of the site.

The outline application had twice been turned down by councillors.

In August 2018, planning officers had recommended approval but members disagreed, saying that part of the village should not be ‘sacrificed’ to gain upgrades to the A697/C106 junction.

The applicants, Rosemary and Claire Armstrong, lodged an appeal, and this was dismissed – but only because a completed section 106 legal agreement was not submitted.

A second application was then lodged with councillors once again recommended to back the scheme in November 2019. However, it was only a ‘minded to approve’ recommendation, as an appeal for non-determination – not dealing with the application quickly enough – had already been submitted.

This meant the final decision was out of the hands of the local authority, although the committee voted to refuse it again.

But the appeal inspector concluded ‘that the benefits of the proposed scheme would clearly outweigh the harm identified relating to character and appearance, the wider environment’.