Development set to continue at Newcastle Great Park

Plans for the final phase of the mixed-use Newcastle Great Park development, comprising up to 1,200 homes and two new schools, are set to be approved.The Newcastle Great Park Consortium – a partnership between housebuilders Persimmon and Taylor Wimpey – plans to build 1,200 homes, primary and secondary schools, playing fields and a changing pavilion, as well as public open space, roads and related infrastructure.Outline planning permission is sought for Cells A and B1 of the masterplan, an area totalling 164 acres to the north of the site.In the other cells, construction is either complete, underway or about to begin. Planning permission has been granted for 2,932 homes, of which more than 2,000 have already been built.The application was originally considered by the Newcastle City Council planning committee in January 2018, but was delayed after a successful legal challenge by wildlife campaigners.Save Newcastle Wildlife called for a review of the proposal, citing its “unlawful interpretation of green belt policy” and the substantial harm it could cause to biodiversity. An online petition calling on the developer to significantly reduce the number of homes being built has now attracted more than 8,000 signatures.It claims the development threatens the habitat of several protected species that live on the neighbouring Havannah and Three Hills Nature Reserve.In response, a statement from law firm Gateley filed on behalf of the Newcastle Great Park Consortium said the scheme would cause “negligible harm” and have “no significant residual adverse effects” to the local ecology.Newcastle City Council planning officers have recommended the amended application be granted planning permission, subject to the developer contributing £6m to primary education provision and £5m to local bus services and highways.