Controversial housing plans near Sunderland's historic Silksworth Hall rejected

Earlier this year, plans were lodged for five two-storey dwellings on an area of land to the south of the Grade II-listed building.

Applicants aimed to build the properties in a rough ‘L’ shape between Silksworth Hall Drive and ‘The Lawns’ within the Doxford ward.

The properties were described as ultra low energy sustainable buildings.

However, the application sparked a strong response from the community with around 49 neighbour objections and a petition in opposition.

Concerns included the principle of development, the impact on the Silksworth Hall Conservation Area and the listed building itself, the loss of trees at the site, highways issues and more.

The housing bid was discussed at a recent meeting of Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways (East) Committee.

In a report prepared for councillors, the council’s planning department labelled the homes as “obtrusive” and recommended the plans for refusal.

Several issues were raised by planning bosses, from the “unacceptable detrimental impact” the homes would have on the Silksworth Hall Conservation Area and Silksworth Hall, to the removal of 50 trees protected by preservation orders.

The council’s tree officer warned damage to nearby retained trees could cause safety issues – including a process called “windthrow” where trees are uprooted by wind.

Planners added the design of the homes would appear “alien and unsympathetic” to both Silksworth Hall and the surrounding residential area.

The committee report also noted the lack of supporting information in the application around archaeology, highway and car parking arrangements and ecology.

At a virtual meeting to decide the application on Friday, November 20, several objector statements from neighbours were read out.

Concerns were also raised about the access to the site via an unadopted road maintained by residents – which could lead to civil disputes in the future.

Doxford councillor, Heather Fagan, urged the committee to refuse the plans and warned of the impacts on local heritage.

“We need to preserve our history and culture in Sunderland and the Silksworth Hall is a perfect example of that and it’s one of those areas that we have to protect for future generations and for the benefit of our environment,” she said.

“This planning application compromises this in a way that cannot be reversed or corrected in future, once it’s gone we lose it for good.”

Calls to refuse the plans were backed by Doxford councillor, Elizabeth Gibson, who said she “strongly opposed the application.”

Councillors Niall Hodson and Darryl Dixon praised the scheme’s design and architecture and said they would welcome similar homes being built elsewhere in the city.

However, councillor Steven Bewick said the design of the properties would “stick out like a sore thumb” in the area.

Cllr Hodson added: “This application is taking a bit of a pasting this evening and I think it’s probably justified.

“I don’t think the planning committee can in good faith pass an application that would then cause a civil dispute about use of a private road.”

Following debate, councillors agreed with the recommendation from planners and refused the planning application.

According to a planning report, Silksworth Hall was built in 1905 for Robert Doxford of the famous Sunderland ship building family.

The report goes on to say: “It is a fine Victorian country house that replaced an earlier Georgian hall. When it was built the formal Georgian parkland was transformed into an Edwardian pleasure park emphasizing the relationship between the new house and its wider grounds, a typical approach of the period.

“The Edwardian grounds of Silksworth Hall have since been curtailed by the development of Silksworth Hall Drive, however the surviving gardens to the south are still quite substantial and important evidence of the former Edwardian parkland.

“The gardens provide the hall with a fine landscape setting befitting its architectural grandeur and historic importance.”

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