Secretary of State allows major housing scheme appeal

Plans to build a community of 750 homes near Lichfield can move forward after the Government allowed an appeal by the developers.

IM Land wants to build the homes, alongside a primary school, care village, shops and a community centre, at Curborough, Staffordshire. 

Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and Bromsgrove MP Sajid Javid has now written to IMP to approve its plans.

IM Land’s strategic land director Jonathan Dyke said: “This is nearly three years of extremely hard work and significant resources to get to the point where we can deliver a scheme which will have a positive impact on the area.

“There is still a lot of discussion ahead with Lichfield regarding the detail of the design and exact mix of homes, however a balanced mix of properties will be delivered to satisfy the huge demand for new homes in the region.”

Around 30% of the housing, about 230 units, has been earmarked as affordable.

The location had been identified as a possible eco-town of around 5,000 homes in 2008 but faced local opposition. Lichfield District Council originally refused planning permission for IM Land’s Curborough scheme in May 2014.

At the time the council said the development was not sustainable “due to the location of the site and the unacceptable environmental and social impacts identified”.

The Government has now overturned this decision, which is one of the first successful residential and mixed use appeals since the publication of the Housing White Paper.

One of the Government’s policy aims is to meet housing demand by utilising suitable available land outside of the Green Belt. The plans are to develop on 60 acres of agricultural land.

IM Land, part of Coleshill-based IM Properties, can now take forward its plan.

Dyke added: “As a team, IM Land is particularly skilled in its ability to unlock more challenging sites and we have the financial backing to see complex planning applications such as these through to fruition, when others may have had to walk away. 

“We believe the proposals will create a genuine community, with the playing fields, the public open space, and the care village to enable local people to thrive and support economic growth in the region.”