Plans for 55 homes on a site at Witchford look set for refusal Wednesday (5) with a report to councillors saying future occupiers could face ‘detrimental harm’.

Gladman Developments Ltd want to demolish exisiting dilapidated farm buildings and build up to 55 residential dwellings (including 30 per cent affordable housing) on a site north of 22 Marroway Lane.

However, a report by senior planning officer, Andrew Phillips, to yesterday’s meeting of East Cambridgeshire District Council’s planning committee recommends the application be rejected.

He said the proposal, which also includes landscaping and an informal open space, along with required infra-structure would lead to “overdevelopment of the site”.

He also said the developer was seeking to build homes in an area (approximately the northern third of the site) where noise levels were so high that to achieve internal living standards closed windows and mechnical ventilation would be required. The site abutts the busy A142.

His report states: “The developer, therefore has failed to demonstrate how a potential scheme of 55 dwellings could be provided on the site without causing detrimental harm to future occupiers’ living conditions and residential amenity.

Witchford Parish Council had objected to the proposals becasue of the noise levels saying: “The occupants of the houses will be severely compromised by the noise levels of the A142 and proposed mitigation is not acceptable.”

Parish councillors were also concerned about air pollution from the road as well as the impact the additional cars associated with the new homes on the village roads.

The planning officer’s report also points out that the transport assessement dated August 2016 is based on old traffic surveys that are unlikely to reflect the current situation within Witchford or consider the approved growth within the village.

“The proposal, therefore, has failed to consider the impacts upon the road network in the surround area.”

Local Highways also commented on the application year stating: “it should be noted that we would not permit the use of Marroway Lane as a vehicle access as to this development.”