Plans for 20 new homes in Lowick approved

Development of land east of Lambton Avenue and Kyloe View already had outline planning permission.

Four ‘gateway’ properties to the development on the eastern edge of the village also had full permission as part of the original hybrid application.

The applicants, executors of Conor Colgan estate, lodged a reserved matters application 18 months ago outlining proposals for the access, appearance, landscaping, layout and scale.

The proposal for a mix of six three bedroom, five four bedroom and nine five bedroom properties – four of them affordable – was approved by officers at Northumberland County Council under delegated powers.

David Love, specialist senior officer, reported: “The development offers a positive contribution to the edge of settlement character by virtue of the various house types, which is consistent with the wider character, and the two-storey style. The low density of the proposal is consistent with the village 'feel' and character.”

Lowick Parish Council said it would have preferred the entrances to the development to have been staggered, not directly opposite each other, but Mr Love explained that the access details had already been approved as part of the original consent for four dwellings.

"The matter of access has already been approved and it would not be reasonable of the planning authority to seek to retrospectively apply modern standards to an already built access,” said Mr Love.

Plans for four bungalows and 12 houses in a second phase of the Village Meadows scheme, off South Road, were also approved in September despite parish council concerns that existing planning permissions already fulfilled demand.