Green light for development set to create 2,500 jobs

Plans to create up to 2,750 homes, community facilities and business space near Lutterworth, which could create 2,500 jobs have been given the green light.

Councillors voted 5 to 4 to approve Leicestershire County Council’s application for the redevelopment of the site which is identified in the Harborough Local Plan as a key area to accommodate new housing in the district, known as Lutterworth East Strategic Development Area (SDA).

The 550-acre development will be on land east of the town and the M1, and would include over 100 hectares of green space – approximately half of the site – two primary schools and employment space to create around 2,500 jobs.

The scheme will also ensure the protection of the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) known as Misterton Marshes, the River Swift and its tributaries, Thornborough Spinney, mature trees and hedgerows.

Cllr Phil King, leader of Harborough District Council said: “This key development of the Local Plan will not only provide extensive open space, it will also provide homes to benefit local families and, with 40 per cent of homes being affordable, it will help those struggling to find a place to live. It will create jobs locally so people can work close to where they live, and it will deliver off-site improvements to sport and recreational facilities in the area. Importantly, traffic modelling shows that the new spine road will result in a significant reduction in traffic through Lutterworth town centre.”

The scheme proposes:

A Community Park, playing fields, allotments, woodland, trees and hedgerows and new ecological habitats
Foot and cycle paths – connecting with Lutterworth town centre
23 hectares of retail and business space – creating up to 2,500 jobs
Two new primary schools
Improvements to main roads and junctions to increase capacity, a new M1 bridge, and a new spine road
A community hub – with the potential for shops, restaurants, cafes, community hall and other local facilities

Approximately 1,260 of the new homes are expected to be built by 2031 and the rest after 2031.

In April 2020, Harborough District Council’s planning committee deferred a decision on the application to consider late representations made on behalf of University Hospitals Leicester.