Plans submitted for ‘sustainable’ holiday lodges in a Harborough district village field

Applicant Alistair Clarke has submitted proposals for two holiday lodges, including access, on a field near Billesdon.

The field can be accessed via a country lane from West Road, which will remain the same, but the applicant has proposed to reposition the gates further into the site, allowing cars space to pull in before opening the gate. The plans also include five parking spaces.

Two similar applications for three dwellings and then for three custom and self-build plots were withdrawn and refused, respectively, in 2020. A revised plan was withdrawn the following year.

One objector argues the site, which sits on the boundary of conservation land, is unsuitable for accommodation and ‘definitely not wanted’.

They continue: “The lane for access is not suitable and extra traffic will cause issues for all residents. It is becoming more of an issue now with deliveries and so forth, adding extra traffic will only exacerbate this considerably.

“These dwellings also have the potential to be lived in all year and again this is not acceptable. Any kind of dwellings here are simply not viable and the applicant needs to stop.”

They also argue the proposal is not in keeping with the Local Plan and that it will impact the biodiversity supported in the field.

However the applicant argues the lodges’ ‘footprint’ account for just five per cent of the field, with the remaining to be either untouched or improved with soft landscaping .

A report into the plans conclude: “This proposal seeks to erect two holiday lodges that are sustainable in both use and location. The site is located in the ‘rural centre’ of Billesdon and as such has an appropriate range of local services and amenities to support a development of this type.

“The scale and form, although reserved at this outline stage, is governed by the surrounding context and site.

“The lodges sit at the lowest point of the site to avoid being a dominant feature of the landscape.

“Overall, these decisions collectively result in a scheme that provides pleasant views into the site and from longer countryside views.”