Campaigners against plans to build 1,500 homes in Yorkshire say estate will destroy distinctive aspect of historic community

They told the second phase of ongoing hearings into Calderdale Council’s draft Local Plan which will decide where homes and businesses might be built up to the mid 2030s, with more than 1,500 of around 9,700 potentially being built in the borough earmarked for the Thornhills Garden Suburb site at Brighouse.

When issues of green belt and impact on the area were discussed, Tony Perryman, of Clifton Village Forum, said members accepted there was a real need to build new homes in Calderdale but there were many ways in which the garden suburb proposals were flawed.

Living there would require using a car, potentially around 1,500 more of them increasing congestion, taking away farm land and green belt, land where people now walked, watched birds, cycled, flew model planes and rode horses, he said.

Development would not help provide homes for local people, said Mr Perryman.

“Developers will want to build executive homes for people who work in Leeds or Manchester,” he said.

Resident Jason Carlton said the historic village of Clifton was listed as a development in the Domesday Book and if the land was allocated as a site the area’s rural and distinctive aspect would be gone.

He said no alternative had considered from the earliest meetings: “There was only one option, that was the garden suburbs. We are going to lose the village setting we have now.

“I feel strongly about this because I am not against development – but the evidence that has been shown does not stack up. There is enormous feeling locally that it is not fair. Whatever comes through it has got to be sustainable, and this isn’t.”

Coun Howard Blagbrough (Con, Brighouse) had earlier told the hearings: “My main fear is one village merging into the next village, into Bailiff Bridge, into Brighouse – there is going to be no identity left in these small hamlets.”

Calderdale Council’s Planning lead Richard Seaman said Clifton’s historic core had been enclosed to a significant degree by 20th century development.

He said there were green spaces including the Kirklees estate, which has links to the legend of Robin Hood, and Clifton Wood next to the village.

“On the eastern side elements around Towngate would still be perceived as a separate area of development. Clearly there will be some connection of that side of Clifton with the garden suburb but my view is that the core will still retain a sense of separateness,” said Mr Seaman.

Mr Seaman said extremely conservative estimates had been put into the costings and the project was viable.

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