A developer has hailed a decision to approve its plans for a major mixed-use scheme in South Derbyshire which could create up to 600 jobs.
Harworth Group has received the green light from South Derbyshire District Council to build 300 new homes, along with 150,000 sq ft of employment space, on a 53-acre former coal and clay workings site in Woodville, near Swadlincote.
The site is owned by Beepart Ltd, with Harworth promoting the site on its behalf through a Planning Promotion Agreement (PPA). Pegasus Group provided planning advice on the application.
The land is being unlocked through the proposed development of the Woodville Regeneration Route, which runs through the development site.
The new route, which will be delivered by Derbyshire County Council and its partners, aims to provide better access to Swadlincote and traffic relief in Woodville, in particular at the A511/A514 ‘Clock Island’ junction.
Planning permission for the new road has already been secured and work is expected to begin later this year.
Meanwhile, Harworth will be responsible for undertaking the development site’s remediation and restoration works.
It intends to use its specialist remediation and infrastructure skills to engineer land prior to the sale of serviced plots to housebuilders and commercial operators.
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The Woodville site is the second major site Harworth has worked on in South Derbyshire.
In nearby Swadlincote, Harworth is delivering Cadley Park – a 200-acre development of the former Cadley Hill Colliery.
Taylor Wimpey and Avant Homes are delivering a combined 530 homes following their purchase of engineered land from Harworth.
Peter Henry, regional director for Yorkshire and Central at Harworth Group, said: “This is another excellent result for the business, bringing a future to another key East Midlands brownfield site.
“Our focus now is on working with both Derbyshire County Council and South Derbyshire District Council to bring the first phases of the site to the market as soon as possible, delivering the economic benefits that we promised within the application.”
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Joanne Neville, Harworth’s planning manager, said: “We listened long and hard to local residents views when we consulted on the Woodville site in summer 2019 and we have managed to design a development that fits their wishes – a site with a strong identity and sense of place, while at the same time properly integrating with the existing community.”
Steve Lewis-Roberts, senior director at Pegasus Group, said: “I’m delighted that planning permission has been granted for this major regeneration development.
“The proposals raised complex planning issues and it was a great team effort to successfully secure a planning permission.”