Planners recommend giving go-ahead to Masham housing scheme

North Yorkshire Council’s Skipton and Ripon area planning committee will debate the application for land off Swinton Road on Tuesday (March 3).

The application was first submitted in 2022 and has been amended several times since, with the number of homes reduced from 48.

The scheme would include 18 affordable properties.

Masham Parish Council has raised a number of concerns and says revisions made to the scheme have not addressed the issues.

These include fears over flooding; additional pressure on Masham sewerage works, increased traffic and highway safety given current speeds and visibility on Swinton Road.

Some 48 local residents have also raised objections over the five rounds of consultation.

A wide range of concerns have been raised, including the scale of the scheme, the loss of agricultural land, that the density of the homes is too high anf the lack of open space and play facilities in the estate.

But a report by planning officers concludes that the application should be passed.

It states: “The scheme would make a positive contribution to delivering housing on an allocated site, including affordable homes, and those that are accessible and adaptable.

“When taking account of the council’s housing land supply at 2.2 years, there is not such significant harm created by the development that would outweigh the benefits provided by the scheme.

“Having regard to the overall planning balance, the proposed scheme complies with the overarching objectives and policies of the local development plan and national planning requirements and thus it represents sustainable development.”

The application will be decided by councillors rather than officers because it is deemed a sensitive site, which Councillor Felicity Cunliffe-Lister has an interest in the land as the owner of Swinton Park.