Hucknall’s former Rolls-Royce site to expand as more…

Hucknall’s former Rolls-Royce site to expand as more new homes approved

Another 150 new homes will be built on the major development at Hucknall ’s former Rolls-Royce site. Housebuilder Persimmon Homes lodged the plans to Ashfield District Council in August last year, asking to build dozens of homes on the former industrial land.

It said its plans will deliver “high-quality housing” with a “diverse range of new homes”. The plans form phase 5b of development at the Watnall Road land, with hundreds of homes and a new school already delivered in earlier phases.

Now the authority has given approval for the 150 homes as well as new access proposals for the parcel of properties. The developer had initially requested 152 homes but the number of homes has since been reduced to “achieve an acceptable design”.

Planning papers reveal the 150 houses will be split between 11 two-bedroom, 74 three-bedroom, 35 four-bedroom and 30 five-bedroom properties.

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The homes will be accessed on Lovesy Avenue and 28 properties will be marketed as ‘affordable’. This will include 14 shared ownership properties and 14 social rental houses.

The council’s planning department approved the plans during a delegated decision on April 28.

This means the decision was taken by council officers and not in a public council meeting by elected councillors. In a report, the authority’s planning department said: “By virtue of the design, being back-to-back and front-to-front, the proposal has been laid out to ensure sufficient privacy and outlook.

“The proposed development provides an acceptable standard of living for future occupiers. From the plans submitted, habitable rooms benefit from adequate lighting and outlook.

“The applicant has worked constructively to overcome issues and the revised scheme is considered to be in accordance with the [wider] development.”

In papers submitted to the authority, housebuilder Persimmon confirmed the homes will be sandwiched between two other small developments.

These form phase 5a of the wider housing estate, which will ultimately bring more than 900 properties to the brownfield site.

Once built, the homes will be close to and visible from the existing former Rolls-Royce runway and airfield buildings, which will be preserved.

The developer says no heritage assets at the iconic site will be “negatively affected” by its plans.

In papers, Persimmon said: “This proposal will deliver high-quality housing, within well-designed streets and spaces, that are considerate to the local character.

“[It] delivers a diverse range of new homes to create a mixed and balanced community.

“Sustainability is at the core of this vision, therefore this scheme ensures homes are well-connected, integrated with the wider environment and strengthened by green infrastructure.”

It added: “The proposed scheme will introduce a high-quality residential scheme [which is] well-integrated into the town of Hucknall.

“It will create new pedestrian and cycle routes through the site, cater to a wide range of housing needs [and] allow for further development adjacent to the site to seamlessly integrate.”