Application in for 250 homes at Cowlishaw abattoir

The private landowner of a 24-acre site off Cocker Mill Lane in Shaw, Oldham, has lodged outline plans to demolish a cluster of former abattoir buildings to make way for a large residential scheme.

The proposals are recommended for approval by Oldham Council’s planning committee later this month.

Under a masterplan drawn up by agency Urban Green and consulted on last year, the Fitton family proposes to demolish all existing buildings on the site of the former Cowlishaw abattoir and replace them with a 250-home development and six acres of surrounding public realm.

The application has been submitted to Oldham Council in outline form and seeks approval for the principle of residential development together with access to the scheme from Cocker Mill Lane.

Detailed matters, including design and appearance, layout, landscaping and scale are reserved for subsequent approval, according to the planning documents – although they state that “the maximum build height would be 2.5 storeys, with a green fringe around the edge to protect and enhance existing hedgerows and trees.”

The proposals also include a network of streets and further open space to “maximise opportunities and encourage walking and cycling”, according to Urban Green’s masterplan.

The development would comprise of a mix of housing types and sizes, including for first-time buyers and family homes. It is not yet known which developer would develop the homes.

Consultancy Avison Young is advising the Fitton family on the planning application.

The site, which mainly comprises agricultural land, sits within Oldham’s local development framework, which it is defined as part of an area of designed Other Protected Open Land. An area of Green Belt lies to the northeast.

The site was also part of a draft allocation in the Greater Manchester Spatial Framework that identified its potential to deliver around 460 homes in total.

Avison Young and the landowner declined to comment on the proposals.