Barn Hall fate in balance

AN anxious wait now ensues for the future of a family beauty spot.

On Friday a four-day public inquiry came to an end which looked at Basildon Council's decision to refuse planning permission for 200 homes at Barn Hall, Wickford and the landowners subsequent appeal of that decision.

Residents are desperate to fend off the development they feel would decimate one of the few remaining green spaces in the town but developers Gleeson Homes say Basildon Council needs to build quickly to keep up with housing targets.

Leader of the Wickford North Green Action Group, Peter Boynes, told the inquiry: “We want to preserve this land at Barn Hall as it is right now, a beautiful area of open, green countryside. We, therefore, support Basildon Council's policy of not building here and hope that one day it will be returned permanently to Green Belt.

“If allowed, this application to build would significantly change, for the worse, the character and appearance of the north-western edge of Wickford.”

However Peter Harrison QC, representing Gleeson Homes countered by saying Basildon Council had made no attempt to meet its housing targets and that the land had been suitable for housing since the 1990s.

He said: “Housing completions are running at less than 50 per cent of the East of England Plan annual requirement.

“This is resulting in a substantial backlog of under provision that is growing year by year creating an ever-higher annual requirement for housing.”

The land was designated as a special reserve area for housing by the council in the 1990s.

Then a new local plan gave the site long term housing status until it expired in 2006 and the council failed to get it replaced, however the council argue the old policy is still in place while it creates a new development framework – but the council have never categorised the land as Green Belt.

Gleeson Homes own around 100 acres of land, just off Station Avenue and are desperate to start building on at least 10.6 acres of the site but have hinted they may look to develop the site further in future if they get the go ahead this time.

Kevin Coleman, of JB planning, was called as a witness for Gleeson Homes. He said: “At the moment we are only dealing with this application but it may be that they look to develop parts of it in future through a phased approach.”

Michael Bedford, representing the council, said if permission was granted it would set a dangerous precedent for the future.

He said: “Planning permission will not be granted for this site until there has been a review of the current plan.”

Inspector Andrew Phillipson will now make a recommendation on the future of the site to local government and communities minister Hazel Blears who could take up to 18 weeks to make a final decision.