Anwyl set for Knowsley approval

Plans by Anwyl Homes for 124 houses off Edenhurst Avenue in Roby, which have attracted more than 700 objections, will go before Knowsley Council’s planning committee next week with a recommendation for approval.

The housebuilder’s Lancashire arm is leading on the project, which proposes 114 four-bedroom and 10 three-bedroom homes billed as Edenhurst Park. The scheme includes open space and a new vehicular access to Edenhurst Avenue. The site is oevergrown and has been unused for ten years, having previously housed a privately-owned sports field.

The 17.3-acre site lies two miles south east of Huyton town centre, close to Bowring Park golf course. Fornerly Green Belt, the site was allocated in 2017 as a sustainable urban extension. The site’s owner is listed in the planning documents as Isle of Man-registered Asciano.

In the reports pack prepared for committee, officers report that 707 representations have been received, 702 of them objecting. Officers recommend that committee grant authority to the head of planning services to approve.

Mostly, the objections received relate to commonly heard complaints around over-development, loss of open space, noise and congestion, with a sizeable number citing the site’s former Green Belt status, which no longer has relevance to planning considerations. However, officers point out that the scheme includes new tree planting and extensive soft landscaping, along with a drainage plan.

To address concerns over noise and congestion in the two-year build period, the applicant has agreed that construction traffic will only use Edenhurst Avenue for 14 weeks while a temporary bridge is built to allow more discreet access to the site.

The cost of this bridge and other highway works have formed part of the applicant’s case that on viability grounds, it cannot meet the policy requirement at the site, and will instead make a provision for offsite affordable housing, a commitment that is to be ring-fenced within the Huyton area.