Wakefield Council has confirmed that a proposed development on Council owned land, at the site of the former Parkhill Colliery at City Fields, will be paused.
The Council has also given assurance that the part of community woodland on the land owned by the Council, which was previously earmarked for future education development, will no longer be developed and will be preserved for future generations. An alternative site for the education development will be sought when this becomes necessary.
The pause will then enable Bridge Homes, the developer for a planned housing scheme on the adjoining land, to review their proposals and consider possible additional environmental mitigations.
The Deputy Leader of Wakefield Council, Cllr Jack Hemingway, said: “We are listening to the voices of the local community and environmental groups, who have expressed concern about the loss of this much-loved area of woodland. Today the Council is committing to protect that area of the Parkhill woodland which was to become an education centre.
“The plans will change and we will work to find a different site for the education development in the future, in order to protect this green space that means so much to the community.
“We are also pleased that Bridge Homes are working with the Council’s Planning Team to further consider the impact on the adjoining site’s bio-diversity and natural environment.
“It is an incredibly difficult balance to strike between meeting the targets and planning requirements dictated by central Government, the housing and welfare needs of our communities, alongside our local aspiration to protect the environment. Please be assured that we will do all we can to achieve this.”
The Bridge Homes development, which will provide 116 homes for sale, rent and Shared Ownership was considered acceptable in planning terms and was recommended for approval to committee in December 2021.
Tony Watling, Managing Director of Bridge Homes, said: “We recognise the importance of minimising our environmental impact where we can. Whilst the proposed scheme met the planning requirements for this site, we will review our proposals to see if we can identify anything we can do differently to support the local biodiversity even more and further reduce the environmental impact.”
The Bridge Homes proposal already includes in excess of 145 new trees to be planted, as well as 510 square metres of native trees along with further plants, hedges and shrubs.
Critical work to install a foul sewer to support the wider City Fields site will continue. The construction of the sewer is a statutory undertaking and as part of this independent specialists have identified the necessary actions to mitigate and compensate the environmental impacts and effects on biodiversity.
Jane Brown, Interim Service Director for Economic Growth and Skills, said: “The ambition of the City Fields Masterplan has always been around improving the quality of life for local people. This comes in all shapes and sizes from investment, job creation and new homes, to lovely new play areas, parks and new businesses. These are opportunities that are much needed in this area.
“To help us achieve this, essential infrastructure needs to be installed and the new sewer is a crucial part of that. Work on this will continue and will also deliver a significant replanting scheme to replace hedgerows and shrubbery, along with planting 2,000 new trees across the City Fields site.”
