Developers want 'landscape-led' housing estate on agricultural land

Plans have been submitted for a “landscape-led” estate of 270 new homes in a Dearne Valley village, which would see green fields developed.

The proposal, from Barratt and David Wilson Homes, would mean fields off Cemetery Road in Jump given over for housing.

Planning documents concede the site - bounded on another side by the Barnsley to Sheffield railway line - has challenges, as it slopes steeply away from Cemetery Road and also has potential for noise from passing trains.

But they also state there are opportunities, “to deliver a landscape-led residential scheme that responds positively to its setting”.

That would involve retaining existing hedgerows and boundary planting, to “define open spaces, soften development edges and strengthen the overall green framework”.

The land is in the Green Belt, but early talks with Barnsley Council planners confirmed they agreed “the site could be defined as ‘Grey Belt’.”

That is because “it does not strongly contribute to Green Belt purposes”, according to planning documents.

The main access to the estate would be a road in from Cemetery Road, with some houses alongside that carriageway having direct access.

Affordable housing would be included in the development, with those homes set at different locations throughout the site.

There would be 68 affordable homes - given over for social housing use - in total, with most featuring two or three bedrooms.

Seven would have four bedrooms or more, however.

Across the estate, there would be parking for 545 vehicles.

If approved, the scheme would be a significant development in Jump, a village which sits between Elsecar and Hemingfield.

Some in the area have previously expressed concerns about the scale of housing development in the area.

A new estate in Hemingfield has recently gained planning permission, after a Planning Inspector overturned Barnsley Council’s decision to reject the application.

Barnsley Council has a Local Plan, designed to spell out where major housing and commercial developments can take place in the years ahead.

However, the authority is currently unable to demonstrate a five year supply of land for housing developments - which is a requirement - meaning it is now more difficult to object to applications on sites not earmarked for use under the plan.