A CONTROVERSIAL plan to build 175 homes in Mossley has taken a step further.
Outline permission for the development on land off Huddersfield Road, between Hey Farm and Mossley Hollins High School, was granted in July 2024, despite the town’s MP, Jonathan Reynolds, its three Tameside councillors – Stephen Homer, Jack Homer and Tafheen Sharif – Mossley Town Council and 512 people objecting.
Now a reserved matters application, detailing how it will look and how it will work, has been lodged with Tameside Council by Wain Homes.
An existing public right of way that runs through the area will be re-routed but supporting documents state it ‘would deliver a range of high quality, high specification homes for the local community in a sustainable location.’
And the applicants believe the scheme – which would be accessed directly from Huddersfield Road – ‘will respond well to the general character and appearance of the surrounding area.’
The three to five-bedroomed properties – 26 of which, 15 per cent – will be affordable, would be placed in the area of the land which has actually long been earmarked for housing.
Areas close to the bottom, including the Puddle Clay Pits Site of Biological Interest (SBI), which is close to the Huddersfield Canal Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), are not included.
Among the proposals, which are largely unchanged from the outline application, is ‘extensive new tree, shrub and hedgerow planting.’
Documents add: “The new linear open space through the centre of the site would follow the line of the swale and the landscape plan shows opportunities for informal play and recreation in the form of benches, natural play logs and play boulders.
“The scheme secures high-quality public open spaces and a green movement corridor throughout the site.”
The proposed development of the 13-hectare site sparked a large reaction among nearby residents and opponents, who listed many reasons why it should not be built.
Mossley Town Council also came out against an original ‘speculative’ plan, stating: “This is effectively a backward step.”
After the outline approval, it added: “It is essential that we protect what makes Mossley special for the generations that live here today and for those who will follow.
“Development must never come at the cost of compromising the character of our town or the well-being or safety of its residents.
“We are not prepared to let the future of our town be shaped by others to the detriment of Mossley people.”
And at a planning meeting, Councillor Jack Homer said: “In 2017, there was the flash flooding on Micklehurst Road and water runs off the hills and on to Huddersfield Road.
“They’re the same issue. It’s still going to come down from the hills and on to the site that’s being proposed to be developed.
“Houses on Hey Farm already suffer from damp and the gardens get overwhelmed. One resident says they have water in their house cavities. It’s happening now and will happen if it’s developed.
“There are developments taking place in Stalybridge and just up the road in Oldham. Huddersfield Road isn’t designed to have the sheer amount of cars that will be on it.
“And ecology develops over 100 years. It can’t be replaced by planting a few shrubs. These things can’t just be replaced. It’s a constant development.”
John Pywell led the Hey Farm residents’ objections and has composed a detailed report stating why it should not go ahead.
He said: “The infrastructure of Mossley can’t cope. I won’t be the straw that breaks the camel’s back, it’ll be the massive rock that breaks the camel’s back.
“Mossley has changed tremendously. Has the infrastructure increased at the same rate as the population? No.”
However, Tameside Council backed it and its Speaker’s Panel (Planning) committee will decide whether to give the formal go ahead.
Documents continue: “There would be a clear hierarchy of streets and spaces across the site and high quality public and private spaces.
“The facing materials to the new houses would include stone to reflect the local vernacular in Mossley and the wider Saddleworth area.
“The proposed houses would benefit from an appropriate mix of parking solutions, including in-curtilage parking (driveway and garage parking), and parking spaces have been sensitively designed to integrate with the overall design concept and landscaping scheme for the sit.”
The applicants also claim it would ‘address the needs for local housing, ensuring they are accessible, usable and easy to understand’ and be ‘visually attractive as a result of the mix of good architecture, urban design and landscaping.
A crime impact survey by Greater Manchester Police, which lists measures it believes would make the development more secure, supports the application, stating: “We welcome the investment in housing in Tameside and are happy to support the application.
“The development is well-laid out from a crime prevention perspective and the mix of housing is considered appropriate.
“We are happy to support the proposals, subject to the developer addressing each of our recommendations.”