A decision on plans to build five properties on the site of a former stables has been delayed.

Swale council considered a request for planning permission for five four-bedroom homes in Chequers Road, Minster, Sheppey , at its planning committee Thursday.

The decision was taken to defer a decision until September 17, following a site meeting on September 2.

The site, which is opposite Danedale Avenue, covers more than one acre.

Twenty-four objections were received during a public consultation on the plans, along with four comments in support.

The authority’s head of planning, James Freeman, has recommended the proposals for approval, despite an objection being submitted by Minster Parish Council.

Mr Freeman added: “Whilst the site falls outside the settlement boundary it is a sustainable location adjacent to an existing urban area with a good range of services which can be reached by sustainable travel modes.”

"It has been the subject of several previous planning applications."

Speaking against the homes, Minster Parish Council’s Cllr John Stanford said: “Not withstanding the supposed shortfall in five-year housing supply on Sheppey, this site is particularly inappropriate in the message its approval sends out to potential developers.

“It has been the subject of several previous planning applications, all refused because its designation as greenfield land means ‘its development is considered to have a significant adverse impact’.

“But specifically, sandwiched as this site is between the east Minster urban area and the fast-growing housing developments at Chequers, it constitutes one of Sheppey’s countryside gaps, designed to keep rural settlements apart and able to retain their own individual identity.”

In the parish council’s submission on the planning application, it added: “The site is set in the open countryside outside the built-up area boundary.

“Minster Parish Council is adamant that this open land should be retained as a valuable countryside gap.”

Visit www.swale.gov.uk/planningsearch with reference 19/505353/FULL to view the proposals

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