LOCAL PLAN: Where could 6,500 new homes be built in Matlock?

Derbyshire Dales councillors will meet in December ahead of a new Local Plan for the district which could result in more than 6,500 new homes being built.
Residents campaigned against plans to include Gritstone Road in the Local Plan earlier this year.Residents campaigned against plans to include Gritstone Road in the Local Plan earlier this year.
Residents campaigned against plans to include Gritstone Road in the Local Plan earlier this year.

In a final six-week consultation that ended last month, people were invited to comment on a pre-submission draft of the plan which proposes a total of 6,571 new homes on 28 residential sites - 15 in the central area of the Dales and 13 in the southern area.

Officers are currently working through responses received from the consultation and any modifications will be considered by full council in December.

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The plan is being submitted to the Secretary of State for an examination in public and a government inspector is expected to deliver a verdict next year.

Derbyshire district council leader, Councillor Lewis Rose OBE, said: “Nothing divides opinion more than where new housing should be built and it has come as no surprise to be on the receiving end of very strong opinions from local people at a series of council and public meetings over recent months.

“I think most of us accept that new housing is needed, not only to benefit our children and grandchildren, but also to bolster the economic prosperity of the district. Where those new home should be built is the big issue of course – but Government are adamant we must provide for the estimated needs of the Dales up to the year 2033.

“Once approved the Local Plan will guide development in the Dales for the next 17 years and also help protect one of the most beautiful districts in the whole of the UK.”

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Two years ago, an inspector ruled that the number of new homes proposed at that time - 4,400 - was 2,000 homes short of what was needed, causing a previous version of the plan to be withdrawn.

In January and February this year, draft Local Plan policies and a new housing target figure were agreed, and provisional sites allocated.

Of the 6,571 new homes that could be allocated in the Local Plan, around 2,200 have already been built or have the benefit of planning permission. Council chiefs say it is anticipated a further 400 new homes will be built by 2033 in parts of the Derbyshire Dales that lie inside the Peak District National Park, where the district council does not control development.

The designated development sites, once approved, will need to accommodate the majority of around 3,600 new homes over the next 17 years to keep up with a predicted population growth of 8.4% and economic growth that could see around 1,700 new jobs delivered across the district.

LOCAL PLAN PROPOSED SITES

Land to the rear of former RBS premises, Darley Dale - 143

Land at Stancliffe Quarry, Darley Dale - 100 dwellings

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Land off Gritstone Road/Pinewood Road, Matlock - 430 dwellings

Land at Halldale Quarry/Matlock Spa Road, Matlock - 220

Land off Middleton Road/Cromford Road, Wirksworth - 126 dwellings

Land at Middle Peak Quarry, Wirksworth - 645

Land at Cawdor Quarry, Matlock - 400