Lilleshall field added to housing plan

A field earmarked for housing in a Shropshire village is being ‘finalised for sale’ by its owner, planning inspectors were told.

The agricultural land off Church Road in Lilleshall, near Newport, has been placed in the draft Telford & Wrekin local plan as possibly taking 49 new homes.

Andy Williams, a planning agent, told local plan review hearings on Thursday that the site owners had been ‘respectful’ and are waiting for more confirmation that the site would be accepted.

Some background planning work had been completed, Mr Williams told the hearing on Thursday. But a planning application has not yet been lodged with planners.

The 3.71 hectare site had been earmarked for 74 homes but that has been reduced, the inspectors were told.

Mr Williams added that a planning application could be lodged “at the end of the year”.

“The owner is finalising the site for a sale,” he added.

“I am 100 per cent confident that this site is coming forward,” Mr Williams said.

“It is a strong housing market area.”

And he added that the site could be built in within five years which would help the council meets its legal need to have five years of housing supply.

Telford & Wrekin Council planners assessed it as one of the sites in the draft local plan.

They say all technical constraints ‘can be reasonably mitigated’.