Following the refusal of an application for the development of land owned by Millbrook Proving Ground Ltd adjoining the village of Lidlington, Bedfordshire, DLP Planning Ltd, who prepared and submitted the application on their behalf, have been instructed to appeal the refusal and also prepare a second, amended application.

The application proposed the development of the land which extends to some 2.46 hectares for residential purposes.  The application comprised, in addition to a master plan and site layout, ecological and landscape assessments, these arising from the characteristics of the site.  Whilst no technical objections were received to this development the Parish Council objected on the basis of their being no need for additional housing in the village and Officers of the Council took the view that its location adjoining the built form of the village was contrary to policy.

Central Bedfordshire Council cannot demonstrate a five year supply of housing land and are in the early stages of reviewing their development plan.  The Council have, over the last twelve months, accepted development on land outside of villages as a consequence of the position they find themselves in, and continue to require development sites in order to meet local housing needs.

DLP Planning Ltd are advising a number of clients with sites in Central Bedfordshire and recently made a number of substantive representations to the Council’s initial ‘Call for Sites’.  Lidlington was one of the sites advanced and is a sustainably located settlement on the edge of the Marson Vale.

DLP Planning Ltd act extensively for Millbrook proving Ground Ltd and obtained, in 2014, planning permission for a substantial extension to the existing commercial development at the site and very recently obtained approval of the Design Code to guide this development.