Endmoor housing to progress after 10-year wait

South Lakeland Council has been recommended to approve plans by Story Homes to build 106 houses to the north of Endmoor village, 10 years after residential was first proposed at the site.

The 13-acre greenfield site, bordering the village’s primary school, has been allocated for housing under the council’s local plan since 2008, and will be accessed from the A65.

Story Homes has allocated 35% of the site as affordable housing, with 37 made available for affordable tenures. The remaining 69 homes will be for open market sale and include a mix of three, four, and five-bed houses.

Recommending the project for approval, South Lakeland planning officers said the scheme would not impact nearby homes and would help to meet the borough’s housing needs by providing the affordable homes.

The recommendation to approve comes despite the local parish council arguing the proposals did not comply with the development brief for the site, particularly around the density of housing, and the lack of an agreed linkage to the area’s village hall.

However, planning officers said: “The scale and form of the development, whilst at a higher number than the established target of 100 dwellings, is appropriate in the context of the site and dealing with the constraints of the site.”

A series of pre-application meetings and consultations have been held on the proposals over the last 12 months.

A Section 106 agreement for the scheme could potentially include a £204,000 contribution to the expansion of the primary school bordering the site, and a £71,000, five-year contribution towards secondary school transport.

It could also include contributions towards a new footpath link and open space management.

The planner for the project is Hourigan Connolly. The council’s planning committee is due to discuss the proposals on 22 February.

• Place North West’s Cumbria Development Update, including speakers from the region’s councils, takes place on 27 February at Low Wood Bay Resort in Windermere. Click here to book your tickets online.