New homes' design too 'urban' for rural setting

PLANNED housing estate northwest of Thornbury has sparked a row over the appearance of new houses which will look “modern”.

- ALEX SEABROOK

Local councillors called for a rethink in their design, as the new homes will not “look anything like farmsteads” despite being located in a rural area.

Up to 595 homes will be built on farmland off Oldbury Lane. South Gloucestershire Council has granted permission for how the first phase of this estate will look and be laid out.

It will be adjacent to the newly built Park Farm housing estate, on the edge of town.

Vistry and Sovereign already received outline permission for the development two years ago. But “reserved matters’, such as the appearance and layout, formed this second application for the first phase of the estate including 179 homes. ‘The rest of the homes will be in later phases.