COUNCILLORS have given the thumbs up for Tatton Estate’s Bluebell Village to be built off Manchester Road.

Cheshire East Council’s strategic planning board approved an amended plan for the scheme on Wednesday – including a maximum of 275 new homes, made up of a care home and no more than 250 houses.

It will also include shops, but plans to build a pub and hotel in the village have been scrapped after Tatton Estate indicated it would be happy to remove them from the application in letter sent to the council days before the meeting.

However, there is uncertainty over the £375,000 which it was hoped would be split between the neighbouring Knutsford Sports Club, Edgerton Football Club and Knutsford Football Club.

“This application has been the subject of many, many hours of discussions between community groups and the sports clubs,” said Cllr Tony Dean, Conservative member for Knutsford.

Knutsford Guardian:

“We would much prefer the pub and hotel not to be included, due to the effect on the existing pub and hotel trade in the town centre not being far away, and the fact that this site was intended for housing use.”

Brian Chaplin, representing five Knutsford community groups, also endorsed the amended scheme along with Debbie Jamison, lead on sports and leisure for Knutsford’s neighbourhood plan.

She urged CEC to secure the funding for the sports clubs and a new sports pitch for Bluebell Village by using planning conditions.

Mrs Jamison told members: “I need your help today to make sure that the committee secures what has been offered – because as we know, words aren’t necessarily binding.”

The scheme appeared to be sailing towards a swift approval when Sebastian Tibenham, the agent representing Tatton Estate, told councillors his client was satisfied to drop plans for the pub and hotel, and pay the £375,000 towards the clubs.

However, he stressed that CEC officers would need to tie up the legal agreements to secure the funding within 24 hours because the new Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is due to be introduced on March 1.

CIL will change the way developer contributions are made towards infrastructure and the rates they pay for it.

Mr Tibenham added: “As the applicant, we are not technically bound by anything until we have a decision notice in our hand.”

Cllr Toni Fox, independent, hit out at the ‘bullish’ Tatton Estate over its demand and officer David Malcolm said it was ‘never going to happen’.

“We already have quite a backlog of section 106 agreements in the pipeline and it would be expecting a very great deal of our officers to complete one tomorrow,” added Conservative Cllr Gill Merry, chairman of the strategic planning board.

Knutsford Guardian:

Following the debate, members ultimately agreed CEC officers should work out how much cash Tatton Estate contributes towards sports provision from the development using a formula.

If Knutsford adopts its neighbourhood plan in March’s referendum, the town council will also be entitled to 25 per cent of the CIL funds Tatton Estate pays on the development – and it could pass that cash over to the three clubs or spend it on improving sports facilities.

The board was split six votes each over whether to include the pub and hotel, with Conservative Cllr David Brown suggesting it would represent a major opportunity due to its proximity to ‘major attraction’ Tatton Park.

But Cllr Merry used her casting vote as chairman to ditch the pub and hotel in line with the wishes of ward councillors and community groups.

The planning application was an ‘outline’ one to secure the principal of the development, and a more detailed ‘reserved matters’ application – including design and layout – will now be put to CEC.