Goosnargh housing scheme gets go-ahead

Development of a 21-acre greenfield site in Goosnargh, Lancashire, is set to begin after Preston City Council’s planning committee voted 10-to-two to allow a 140-home scheme to go ahead.

The scheme, a joint project between the local landowner and Community Gateway Association, covers a site at Bushells Farm, off Mill Lane, which falls outside the designated area of separation located to the West and South of Goosnargh.

These areas have been designated in Preston’s Local Plan to maintain the openness of the countryside and to prevent villages being merged together by overdevelopment.

The proposed masterplan for the site including open green spaces, and a new public car park to provide extra facilities for the nearby village hall and primary school.

Around 45% of the proposed houses on the site are designated as affordable.

At a committee meeting, councillors voted 10 to two in favour of the development, in line with planning officers’ recommendations; only Cllrs Stuart Greenhalgh and Susan Whittam voted against. The scheme was given the green light subject to a Section 106 agreement.

PWA acted as planner for the scheme; the company’s director Paul Walton said: “This development will make an important contribution to affordable housing provision in the area over the coming years, helping people who have grown up in Goosnargh to stay in the area.

“These will be quality homes designed to be in keeping with the surroundings, but which will also help other settlements in the vicinity retain their character and identity.

“There are numerous community benefits to the new scheme, including access to new green space, new footpaths and cycle paths and improved parking provision.”