Council approves 1,560-home plan branded ‘Berlin Wall’ by resident

At a meeting on Tuesday (June 25), Barnsley Council’s planning board granted full permission for the first phase of 216 homes on land between Barugh Green Road and Higham Common Road. The scheme also received outline approval for a further 1,344 homes, a primary school, shops, a park, and community facilities, bringing the total to up to 1,560 homes.

The applications, submitted by Strata Sterling Barnsley West Ltd, form part of the MU1 site, the largest local plan allocation in the borough.

A second, linked application also received outline approval for up to 112,000 square metres of employment space, along with full permission for site preparation, drainage and landscaping.

The homes and employment land will be built in phases stretching to 2036, with work on industrial and commercial units expected to begin as early as 2025. The primary school is expected to be operational by 2029.

Speaking at Barnsley Council’s planning board meeting on Tuesday (June 25), St John’s Green resident Brian Heathcote described the planned two-storey homes near existing bungalows as resembling the ‘Berlin Wall’.

Mr Heathcote, who has lived in the area for 55 years, warned that the new properties would overlook bungalows and destroy residents’ privacy. He also raised concerns about increased traffic, pressure on medical services, and the loss of the area’s character.

He added: “The developers and the council are in severe danger of failing their duty of care to residents,” and added that the plans should only go ahead if ‘subject to a major review’.

The applications drew more than 100 objections, with concerns about traffic, loss of green space, pressure on local services, and homes overlooking existing properties. Councillors from Darton West and Dodworth raised similar issues, including the need for the link road to be built before housing. While many cited strain on the NHS, planning officers said current rules prevent developers from funding health services, and no formal objections were made by NHS bodies.

However, Claire Linley, planning director at Strata Homes, said that the area had ‘long been identified as a critical site to meet the borough’s housing needs’.

Ms Linley said that the development will be ‘community focused,’ with contributions including £11m for a new primary school, £8m for a new link road to the M1, £1.7m to improve roads off the site, and £912,000 to improve bus services.

Ms Linley told the meeting that MU1 is a “technically difficult site, with large upfront costs”, and is a “flagship development which provides homes for families, young people and elderly residents alike’.

Garry Hildersley, Barnsley Council’s head of planning, said the development will deliver around 17 per cent of all the homes expected to be built in urban Barnsley under the Local Plan.

He added that while the site was originally designated as green belt, it was removed and allocated for housing and employment when the council’s Local Plan was adopted in 2019.

Councillors on Barnsley Council’s planning board voted to approve the applications at Tuesday’s meeting.