Villagers have voiced concerns their home is 'being spoiled' by hundreds of new houses. Altered plans have been put forward for 195 homes off Park Road in Calverton, as part of a greenlit 363-home Persimmon housing estate where many properties have already been completed.
The proposal would substitute the already approved plots for marginally larger properties that comply with the government's ‘Future Homes’ standard, which aims to achieve low carbon heating and high levels of energy efficiency. Neighbours though were upset by the loss of greenery as a result of the housebuilding and worried over the strain on the area's infrastructure, which they said was already stretched.
Mick Cherry, 79, a retired pit worker who has lived in Calverton for decades, thought the homes had ruined the village. "It has been rubbish, it has spoiled Calverton big time," Mr Cherry said.
"It used to until recently be all green fields and birds singing but now a lot of that is gone. Calverton is not big enough for all this and we don't have the doctors or even schools.
"It is such a shame but what can we do now, nothing really. I know people have to live somewhere but the wildlife has really suffered - there used to be carrots and potatoes grown there and I used to put my tractor there."
Heather Marshall, 65, and Zoe Marshall, 35, who were "born and bred" in Calverton, had concerns about the scale of the project. "It is a shame to be losing this space, but it [Calverton] is growing. The services and parking might struggle, there is already traffic further down the road, and GPs and dentists are difficult to get to.
"I remember when there was nothing here at all, so it has all changed since then. It is fine to build these big private homes but we need more housing in the village and more social housing," Heather added.
The finished estate will have two access roads off Park Road and Collyer Road, as well as amenity and recreational space. According to the developer, the scheme has been designed to deliver "high quality housing" to the area, which would be "strongly integrated with the local community". Steven Wood, 62, from Calverton, said: "They seem to be getting rid of fields for more and more houses now everywhere. I think it is all a bit much, I'm not sure the roads and everything else can take this many new houses in a village."
The new layout considers potential future phases of residential development on the site, according to planning documents. On nearby Flatts Lane, 84 homes have been constructed by Bellway Homes.
The site is an allocated site in Gedling Borough Council’s Local Plan and has been allocated for 390 homes. Despite this current proposals would see 364 homes built, as a section of the allocated land is not owned by Persimmon Homes.
A spokesperson for Persimmon Homes, who were given outline planning permission in 2020 for the project, said: "Our recent reserved matters application to Gedling Borough Council seeks to alter our plans for our development in Calverton, ensuring all of our upcoming properties are compliant with the new Building Regulations and the forthcoming introduction of the Future Homes Standard. It does not seek approval for additional units or any significant layout changes.
"This revision to the application will allow us to make our homes on the development as energy efficient as possible, in line with our commitment to sustainable development and the Government's green agenda. As part of this, we have applied to include solar PV panels and also air source heat pumps with additional cavity wall insulation on the plots being delivered under the Future Homes Standard." The planning application is pending consideration by Gedling Borough Council.
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