Wychwood housing set for inquiry after council rejection

Cheshire East Council’s planning committee has unanimously refused a proposal for a 900-home extension to Wychwood Village at the site of the former Gorstyhill Golf Club.

The project was first proposed by applicant Haddon Developments at the end of 2014. A ruling on the project was delayed while a decision was made on whether to include the site in Cheshire East’s emerging Local Plan.

When this was refused earlier this year, the applicant appealed to the Secretary of State in order to bypass the council.

The Cheshire East planning committee judgment will now be used as part of its submission ahead of a planning inquiry, which is expected to take place next year.

There has been strong local opposition to the plans, which were developed following Haddon’s director Peter Hunt’s acquisition of the former De Vere golf course in 2011. Wychwood Village totals around 350 homes, with residents resisting it as an inappropriately large increase in housing in the area.