Peel L&P awaits decision on Pemberton Colliery

The developer wants to build 268 homes on a 29-acre site at the former colliery south-east of Wigan town centre and has sought outline consent for the project.

Peel L&P, part of the Peel Group, has already won planning approval to build a £23m M58 link road connecting Smithy Brook roundabout to the junction with Billinge Road to the south of the site, which forms part of the housing project and for which work is already underway. 

A decision on the housing is to be made at Wigan Council’s planning committee meeting on 14 July where the plans are recommended for approval.

The proposed homes, a mix of detached and semi-detached properties, would be delivered by Peel L&P’s housebuilding arm, Northstone, under the plans. Around 13% would be made available on affordable tenures.

Pemberton Colliery, which closed in 1959, is allocated for employment use under Wigan’s Local Plan. Opting for residential development at the site could “undermine the strategy of the plan to deliver new employment opportunities and improve the quality of Wigan’s employment offer”, the strategic planning department noted in documents submitted ahead of the meeting tomorrow.  

However, a report from Aherne Property Consultants, commissioned by Peel L&P in April, concluded that the site was not suitable for the kind of industrial development for which it is allocated. 

“The fact that the application site has remained undeveloped confirms that it is a poor employment site that is unlikely to be developed for the foreseeable future,” the report said. 

Peel L&P submitted plans for 275 homes last August but the proposal has been scaled back since then. 

Barton Willmore is the planning consultant for the project.

Jonathan England, development director at Northstone, said: “Pending approval, Peel L&P’s homebuilder Northstone would bring these plans forward to create energy-efficient family homes that will help residents to save money on their fuel bills.

“Evidence also shows that it’s unlikely the site will be redeveloped for employment use and a residential scheme will help to bring the necessary funding for the M58 link road and Peel L&P has committed to build the part which runs through the site to help secure important infrastructure for the borough.”

The colliery was the site of an explosion in October 1877, which killed 37 people. 

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