Planning secured for Bury residential scheme

Bury Council’s planning committee has unanimously granted outline planning permission for a 108-unit residential scheme on a 2.6-hectare site close to the town centre.

The scheme, which was submitted by local manufacturing company Andrew Industries, will see the redevelopment of its former textile mill site off Walshaw Road, which closed in March this year.

The company was represented at committee and advised by property consultancy Gerald Eve’s lead planning partner, Harry Spawton.

Addressing the committee he said: “This scheme will provide over 100 much needed homes for local people and it will also bring a vacant, brownfield site, in a sustainable location back into active use.

“The new housing delivered will help the council to meet its five-year housing supply, thus reducing the pressure on other local greenfield sites.”

He added: “We undertook wide-ranging technical reports to assess the viability of the site for housing and undertook pre-application engagement with the local community.

“The recycling of brownfield sites fully accords with national planning guidance and the thrust of the policies in Bury’s adopted plan and we are delighted that the committee has given the scheme its unanimous support.”

Mark Bennett, group managing director of Andrew Industries, said: “This site was in active use until earlier this year but the buildings are simply not suitable for modern manufacturing and as such have no future.

“Our proposal will deliver 108 quality homes for the local community which will complement the existing residential properties which border the site.”

Gerald Eve’s Manchester-based development team will be bringing the site to the market in the coming weeks.

Technical advisors included: Planit (master planners), Croft (highways), Tyler Grange (ecology) and E3P (geo-technicals).