Taylor Wimpey wins appeal over Inverkeithing development plans

An appeal against a council decision to refuse plans for almost 300 homes in Fife has been upheld by the Scottish Government.Taylor Wimpey is to deliver 295 homes on farmland at the Spencerfield site in Inverkeithing. A quarter of the homes will be affordable housing.Councillors on Fife Council’s west planning committee previously refused the plans in 2015 but had no choice other than to approve them last week, after Taylor Wimpey’s appeal against the initial decision was upheld.Taylor Wimpey has said it will hand over around £580,000 towards road improvements as part of its approval, however, pledges to build a GP practice and make money available for school places are no longer on the table.A previous application for 450 homes dating back to 2013 came with a pledge to include a GP practice and contribute towards the regeneration of Fraser Avenue. The report to the committee in 2013 also contained a requirement for an education contribution of £2,400 for each private house built and £1,200 for each private flat.Councillors threw out the plans, which were subject to more than 250 objections, and a subsequent appeal by Taylor Wimpey was thrown out by the Scottish Government’s Directorate for Planning and Environmental Appeals (DPEA).The housebuilder made a claim for Fife Council to cover its expenses but this too was knocked back by the DPEA.In 2015 councillors tried again to prevent Taylor Wimpey from building on the site, which will reduce the distance between the settlements of Inverkeithing and Dalgety Bay to less than half a mile.Their refusal of the scaled down plans, with no mention of a GP surgery or contributions to either education or Fraser Avenue, was later overturned by a government reporter.