MARK Jenkinson MP has asked the Government to put the brakes on controversial housing plans for Seaton approved by Cumberland Council earlier this week.
The Planning Committee gave the 180-home estate the green light at a meeting on Wednesday [24th April 2023] despite concerns over increased traffic, lack of school places, and claims of overdevelopment in the village.
The MP for Workington has written to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to ask that the scheme is ‘called in’, drawing attention to several planning contraventions ignored by the Labour-majority panel.
The planning report says that Workington Academy is oversubscribed, yet no education contribution was sought from the developer to pay for more school places.
The Council policy is for 20% affordable housing, yet developers Story Homes have only been asked for 10%.
In his submission, Mark has also pointed out that the traffic assessments put before the panel dated from a quieter period during Covid, when many people were working from home, adding that updated figures should have been provided.
Reacting to the panel's decision, he said: “Labour has a majority on the planning committee including Seaton’s councillor.
“Yet not one voted against 180 homes, a reduction in the affordable housing requirement and they agreed to seek no contribution whatsoever for new school places.
“It is Seaton, alongside Harrington, who already suffer from the Council’s disastrous school places policy - and this will only exacerbate the problem.
“Local planning authorities should take a proactive approach to meeting this requirement, rather than simply waving things through.
“There has been some big talk from Labour’s parliamentary candidate, but no action. He assured residents he’d fight the plans, though there are no objections from him listed, and he didn’t speak against at the meeting.
“Jimmy Grisdale, the Labour councillor for Seaton, sits on the planning panel. He had promised villagers he would vote against the scheme so he could get elected. He didn’t vote at all.
“It is a matter of public record that Fred Story, of Story Homes, donated £100,000 to the Labour Party in September 2022, and I would be very curious to know how this money has been spent.
“I would hope for assurances that this did not influence the outcome of the decision – or the level of scrutiny given to this application.”
