Hunmanby self-build housing plan approved despite concerns
An application was given the green light at a meeting last Thursday
Scarborough Council has approved a self-build housing plan in Hunmanby despite public concerns about the timescale of the scheme and its impact on public services.
An application for up to nine self-build houses in Hunmanby, submitted by Howard Midgely, has been approved by the council’s planning committee at a meeting on Thursday, March 9.
Each plot at 14 Sands Lane, Hunmanby, Filey will be sold to a different purchaser who will design and construct their own home.
A report prepared for the meeting states that except for the means of access, all other matters including appearance, layout, scale and landscaping are ‘reserved’ for later consideration.
Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Michelle Donohue-Moncrieff who represents the Hunmaby ward, raised the issue of financial contributions that would be required towards green spaces, health, and social services.
She said: “We did finally get the Integrated Care Board’s (ICB) contribution to this application online, and to say that it is inadequate and unacceptable would be minimal.
“It simply is a ‘back of the fag packet calculation’ for a Section 106 agreement.”
The Humber and North Yorkshire ICB is the organisation with responsibility for local NHS functions and budgets.
Cllr Donohue-Moncrieff said: “My question to councillors and our friends at the ICB is when are you actually going to do your job?
“The Local Plan is not just there to deliver housing. It also put in a provision to protect a very basic right, which was people’s primary care.
“This is a completely unacceptable position that we are in, that a public body should act in such a negligent manner towards the most basic right of healthcare.”
She added: “If a clinical professional treated their patients with the same contempt as the ICB does the patients of Hunmanby surgery, Filey surgery, and indeed Sherburn surgery, they would be struck off.”
A council officer replied, stating: “The level of monies requested is the formula used by the ICB and I do accept that £4,000 may not sound like a large sum, but it is in line with the guidance.”
The developer will also be required to make financial contributions of £6,000 to outdoor sports and £10,000 to children’s play.
While no objections were received from Yorkshire Water, the Highway Authority, or the Flood Authority, more than a dozen members of the public objected to the plans with Hunmanby Parish Council also raising several concerns over drainage and the capacity of the sewage system.
While some committee members said they were concerned by the points raised by Cllr Donohue-Moncrieff, they also welcomed the introduction of self-build schemes.
Cllr Jane Mortimer said: “I was delighted to see that it was an outline for self-build because we have very few of those.”
She added: “I can understand the ward councillor’s huge concerns and I think it affects everybody, it certainly did at Eastfield.”
Concerns were also raised about the timescale of the separate developments, with Cllr Sam Cross stating: “One site could be finished and the other could be totally unkempt for the next two or three years and I think that is where we need restrictions on timescales.”
However, a council officer said that “the Government is clear that that type of condition is unacceptable” and added that refusal of the plans on the grounds of the financial contributions “cannot be warranted”.
Following a vote, the plan was approved by the council’s planning and development committee with no votes against and one vote in abstention.