Plans submitted for 215-home development on outskirts of Sunderland

Sunderland City Council’s planning department has received an application for agricultural land south of the Philadelphia Complex and east of Philadelphia Lane.

The greenfield site, which sits between Philadelphia, Newbottle and New Herrington, has previously been identified as a ‘housing growth’ site in the local authority’s Core Strategy and Development Plan.

Applicants Vestbrown Limited have applied for outline planning permission to establish the principle of up to 215 homes on the site and associated access arrangements.

Those behind housing plans for the site have described the scheme as a “logical extension” to the Philadelphia Complex housing development to the north.

All other matters such as layout, scale, appearance, landscaping and precise car parking provision would be subject to a ‘reserved matters’ planning application in future.

The outline planning application has been submitted to council officials with a range of supporting documents providing details of the scheme.

A planning statement notes the site represents a “highly sustainable and logical location for residential development” and that the plans would create jobs and “aid in meeting Sunderland’s housing need”.

It is estimated that the development would help create more than 660 jobs, including seven apprentices, during the construction period.

A design and access statement notes the houses would range in size from three to four bedrooms, with provision for 15% affordable housing for the development.

Highway access to and from the A182 would be taken via the Philadelphia Complex redevelopment to the north, with the new housing estate expected to benefit from a network of footpaths and cycleways.

In addition around 2.6 hectares of publicly-accessible greenspace would be provided, including four separate greenspace ‘pockets’ within the site, as well as structural landscaping to “create a new defensible Green Belt boundary”.

The design and access statement adds: “The proposal aims to deliver a development that will result in significant benefits to the area, providing high-quality housing to suit local requirements, while remaining sensitive to the nearby natural context of the Green Belt”.

A statement of community involvement submitted to the council states a community consultation took place earlier this year in the form of a leaflet drop.

The community consultation statement said: “Only 21 responses were received from 1,500 leaflets which were sent out to local residents and over a three-week consultation period.

“This represents a very low response rate of 1.4% which suggests that the proposals are not contentious across the local community as a whole.

“Whilst some support and constructive feedback on the proposals was received, it is acknowledged that the majority of the 21 responses did not support the proposals.

“A small range of reasons were provided for objection and typically focused on the need for additional housing, perceived loss of Green Belt land and concern over level of infrastructure to accommodate the proposals”.

Those behind the housing scheme said a range of “detailed technical and environmental assessments and investigations” had been undertaken to “address the identified concerns of residents on these matters”.

Developers added that all comments received have been “carefully considered” by the applicant and “where feasible”, have helped “finalise the proposed development”.

A decision on the outline planning application will be made once a period of consultation has concluded.

Information on Sunderland City Council’s website suggests a decision is expected by November 21, 2023.

For more information on the planning application or to track its progress, visit the council’s planning portal website and search reference: 23/01653/OUT