A developer campaigning for more self-build housing sites in the Harrogate district has vowed to re-submit an application to build low-carbon eco-homes at Flaxby.
Ben Holmes first applied in 2020 for planning permission to build nine homes around the edge of the site on the southern approach to the village, all with solar panels and air-source heat-pumps, and communal facilities in the middle.
But the government’s Planning Inspectorate turned down the application, saying the plans’ nuclear format did not conform to the village’s traditional linear pattern. It also cited a lack of housing density; it wanted more homes to the be built on the site.
Mr Holmes, who is originally from Birstwith, then applied to build 20 homes, but withdrew the application after conversations with residents who felt the density was too high. He also applied to create a nature reserve in an adjoining paddock, to be gifted to the village, but this too was refused by planners.
His latest application was for five homes following the line of the road, so as to fit in with the village’s linear format, but that too has been rejected by a planning inspector, who had concerns about the effects on the landscape and the future residents’ over-reliance on cars to get to amenities.
Mr Holmes now plans to submit an application for just two large, self-build homes, and to gift the remainder of the site to the village as a nature reserve or playground, or for any use the villagers feel they need. He said:
“It’s just incredible that the council should put so many barriers in the way of high-quality, low-carbon homes like these.
“We should be encouraging people to design and build their own homes – that’s what they do on the continent. Instead, we rely on the Big 5 housebuilders to provide our houses, as cheaply as possible.”
All the homes Mr Holmes has applied to build would conform to Passivhaus standards.
Pioneered in Germany, Passivhaus homes are built to be extremely energy-efficient, with heating and lighting costs typically under £100 a year. Build costs tend to be 10-20% more than for conventional homes, but that initial outlay is recouped within a few years of construction through savings on energy bills.
The latest application will be for just two large homes at the Flaxby site.
Despite Mr Holmes’ repeated efforts to gain permission to develop the site, none of his applications were assessed by Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee because they were rejected by planning staff. He said:
“What we really need is to get this scheme in front of the planning committee. They’re elected and can better represent people’s views.
“I’ve been badgering the council’s planning department for years to get it before the planning committee, but I think they’re afraid it will go through and open the floodgates to loads more applications on the edges of settlements. That’s not part of their Local Plan, and they wouldn’t have control over these developments.
“Hopefully, the new [North Yorkshire] council will be more amenable and more supportive of this kind of development. It’s very much needed.”
Read more:
- Flaxby Park withdraws appeal over 350 eco lodges refusal
- Stray Views: why build Maltkiln when Flaxby would be better?
- Developer resubmits Flaxby self-build homes eco scheme
