Plan for 1,275 homes after new town bid rejected

Plans to build 1,275 homes on green belt land in a village have been submitted months after a proposal for a new town there was rejected by the government.

Many locals had opposed developing a new town in Adlington, Cheshire, which could have seen the building of 10,000 homes, under a plan brought by developer Belport.

After the decision in March, Belport said it still believed the site was "viable" and it has now outlined a "landscape led" proposal for Adlington Park, saying it would "create a balanced and sustainable new community".

Some residents welcomed the new plans to fix a housing shortage, while others cite a lack of infrastructure and raise concerns over the loss of green belt land.

A consultation on the plan for 1,275 homes to be built on 168 acres of green belt land, farmland next to London Road between Macclesfield and Stockport, has begun.

Belport described it as "a thoughtful extension to an established community in a historic setting" and said there were "sustainable transport links" to both Manchester and Stoke and it incorporated "green open space".

The developer said the planned homes were a range of sizes, from one-bedroom properties to houses with more than five bedrooms, with the majority having three.

Affordable housing would be included in the scheme and it would feature a local centre with a retail offering, flexible commercial space, a primary school, outdoor sports provision, and community facilities.

Adlington Parish Council chair Simon Gleave said he was not opposed to the new plans because the development would be "on a much smaller scale than the original size of the new town".

"Adlington did need some development, but the right development in the right place," he said.

"It's the right place in Adlington if there has to be some development somewhere."

Gleave said he thought the development might address a local shortage of housing, adding: "If there are some affordable houses that allow local people to be able to stay in the village then I'm all for that."

Another local resident Aysha Hawcutt said that the Adlington Park development was a better alternative to previous plans for a new town - but it "would still dwarf Adlington village".

"Adlington Park is obviously a much better option than what we were facing before when Adlington was put forward for as a potential new town location," Hawcutt said.

"It is much, much smaller and on a totally different scale but it does still put forward a large-scale development of a size that would still dwarf the current Adlington village."

She said villagers should not just "automatically reject any new development" because "the area does need housing".

"My main concern is that a lot of the arguments do still stand," she said.

"It is green belt.

" It is valuable farming land.

"And as things stand, the infrastructure isn't there to support even a development of this size."

Belport said on its consultation website that Adlington Park was still a "significant" housing scheme.

"Positioned on the edge of Adlington, Adlington Park will create a carefully planned extension to the existing village," it said.

"We recognise that development on this scale is significant.

"That's why every aspect of Adlington Park has been approached with care."

A Belport spokesperson said: "Our proposals acknowledge the site's green belt status, assessing the loss of agricultural land and setting out a clear, evidence-led case for the benefits of this scheme."

"The Adlington site is adjacent to an established railway station providing sustainable transport links," they added.

"The landscape-led proposals can provide 1,275 homes across a range of tenures and sizes alongside a new primary school and other community facilities.

"Large areas of green and blue open space are integral to designs, creating new areas for recreation and will support a biodiversity net gain."

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