Agenda item

This application was for the erection of a 56no. unit Dementia Care Centre (consisting of 1 bed apartments) with associated parking, communal gardens and SUDs, following demolition of the existing buildings on the site of Former The Wrekin Endeavour Centre, North Road, Wellington, Telford, Shropshire.

Councillor G Cook left the meeting for this item of business.

This application was before the Committee as it required a S106 Agreement and involved land owned by the Council.

An update report was tabled prior to the meeting which addressed concerns raised by Ward Member Cllr Thompson and gave details of financial contributions sought towards local improvements in the form of a replacement off-grid bus shelter.

The Area Team Planning Manager addressed Members that this was a full application for a 56 bedroom two and three storey dementia care unit for affordable rent.  Nomination rights would be secured for the Council by S106 agreement.  A written update had been circulated in relation to the bus shelter and the application was recommended for approval.

Councillor J Thompson spoke in favour of the application which was currently an empty property and supported people with dementia and brought employment opportunities forward.  He did, however, raise concerns regarding the safety of children from the local schools during construction, help required towards the school signage and fencing.  He was pleased that the bus stop would be retained but raised concerns as to where it would be located and asked that the local bus service remain in place during construction.

The Area Team Planning Manager confirmed that the safety of the school children would be secured by an environmental management plan which conditions areas such as parking on site, controlling the hours of deliveries.  He confirmed that no money had been secured towards the railings but that the bus shelter had been brought forward as a different piece of infrastructure but at this point it was not sure where it would be positioned.  This was likely to be slightly south of its current position but highway would take the access into account.  There would be a temporary bus stop for the continuation of the bus service during construction.

During the debate, some Members asked that Councillor Thompson’s concerns were taken on board and that he and residents were consulted on the siting of the bus stop.  Other Members requested that school drop/pick up times were avoided during construction so that traffic was not in the area at busy times and that the walkways were important for residents so railing need to be in place for safety reasons.  Further comments were that these units were desperately needed and it was a good site to develop, but parking issues were of concern, together with the apartments being below the national space standard.  Other Members felt it was good to see that Town and Ward Member supporting the much needed application.

The Area Team Planning Manager confirmed that the safety of school children had been considered and that a traffic management plan would be a condition.  They could look at replacing existing railings that were missing or damaged but no contribution from the developer was sought as it did not meet the legal tests all other railings would remaining in place.  The Neighbourhood Team would highlight any enforcement issues.  With regard to the space standards, the units each had 33-34m which included a shower room which was approximately 3-4m below the standard however each unit would be made up of 10-12 apartments with a central area for dining and a kitchen/living space to encourage independent living and better relationships between the residents so for this reason the units were slightly smaller as there were communal spaces which contribute towards the overall living spaces.

Upon being put to the vote it was, unanimously:-

RESOLVED – delegated authority be granted to the Development Management Service Delivery Manager to grant full planning permission (with the authority to finalise any matter including conditions, legal agreement terms, or any later variations) subject to:

a)    the applicants entering into a S106 agreement to incorporate a

i)       Local Lettings Plan;

ii)      Nomination Agreement, and;

iii)    £250.00 contribution towards S106 monitoring

b)   the conditions contained within the report and the update report (with authority to finalise conditions and reasons for approval to be delegated to Development Management Service Delivery Manager)