A developer is pressing ahead with plans for bungalows despite being told they would be “viewed unfavourably” by the council.

Rockwill Homes have asked Stockton Council for planning consent to build seven bungalows near Urlay Nook Road, Eaglescliffe.

The proposed two and three-bedroom homes at Hunters Rest include two affordable bungalows for rent, “likely to be managed by a reputable local housing provider”, with parking, gardens and landscaping.

The developer says the site has already been developed for 22 homes. “The approved development is now substantially complete and now the applicant wishes to apply for seven additional bungalows on a site originally designated as part open space for the development,” a design and access statement says.

The Northern Echo: The site where the bungalows could be built

“The development will be a benefit to the area by delivering bungalows, in very short supply locally,” adds the statement by MD2 Consulting.

According to the applicant, the council previously said the plan “would be viewed unfavourably”, partly because it would take away open space from the original housing scheme. The developer says it is providing a “more than generous” amount of open space including two community orchards and grassland, and argues open space would not be lost as it had not been provided yet, with building works still underway on the existing 22-home scheme.

It says the council claimed the plans did not flow well from the nearby development, adding they “strongly dispute” this and saying: “the proposed development has been been designed to the highest standard, in relation to quality, character and sensitivity, landscape, layout, scale and separation, privacy and amenity, and also in terms of local distinctiveness and accessibility.”

It was also said there would be an area for anti-social behaviour in a narrow corridor behind the bungalows, which the developer says has now been removed.

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A supporting statement by MD2 Consulting says: “In spite of the negative response from the local planning authority to the pre-application proposal… the applicant has commissioned the submission of a detailed planning application, albeit with a revised layout plan, to address concerns.”

It says the plan is “bespoke and high-quality, unlike the uniformity of standard house types delivered by large housebuilders. The proposals will mean that all of the houses, both existing and proposed, will sit comfortably together as a single, high-quality, varied, micro-development.

“We believe it will make a positive impact upon the neighbourhood, whilst satisfying housing need.”