At second time of asking, housing plan can progress

A CONTROVERSIAL plan to knock down two homes and build 13 in their place has finally been decided after delays complicated the process.

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Councillors had voted to approve the scheme, in Whitwick, at the start of the year but their decision ultimately held no weight after the final say was passed to the Planning Inspectorate.

Applicants Nick Harding and Joanne Tudor felt North West Leicestershire District Council had taken too long to rule on the plan, for land off Church Lane, and appealed the application on the grounds of “non-determination”.

The time allotted to the council to decide the scheme had expired in November 2024 on the day after councillors voted to defer their decision.

Councillors wanted the applicants to look again at the amount of traffic that goes down Church Lane amid concerns the area is a “rat run" and the application's traffic survey had been done during the Easter school holidays, when they felt fewer cars would have been on the road.