Fylde moves to refuse £14.2m St Annes housing

Councillors rallied against a proposal from Rowland Homes to build 52 properties on a four-acre site off Wildings Lane due to a lack of affordable provision. 

Fylde Council’s planning committee met last week to determine the application, which was recommended for approval by officers. 

However, a decision on the proposals has been deferred until next month’s meeting so that the robustness of the committee’s reasons for refusal can be tested. 

Cllr Linda Nulty led the calls for the scheme to be rejected, citing Rowland’s failure to meet the authority’s 30% on-site affordable housing policy. 

“If this was in Kirkham there would be 30% (on-site affordable housing) no questions asked,” Cllr Nulty said. 

“If they can’t provide what our requirements are, they don’t build it.” 

In lieu of on-site affordable homes, Rowland had committed to providing £378,000 through a Section 106 agreement to provide discounted properties elsewhere in the borough. 

The scheme has a GDV of £14.2m, according to a viability assessment by Cushman & Wakefield.

The principle of housing on the site, which is allocated for redevelopment into homes in the local plan, has been established previously. In 2017, Fylde granted approval to Tesni Properties for 45 properties on the plot, 30% of which were earmarked as affordable. 

To learn more about Rowland’s scheme, search for application number 21/0811 on Fylde Council’s planning portal.

At the same meeting, Fylde approved its own plans to convert the former Girls Charity Grammar School and Lloyds TSB bank on Poulton Street in Kirkham into a bar restaurant.