Housing agreed with conditions

Planning committee members agreed the application on the understanding that 20 per cent of the homes will be subject to a disability criteria and 30 per cent are affordable for local people.

When development goes ahead at the two-hectare site, which lies beside Darley Dale’s Bakewell Road and opposite Whitworth Hospital and the new Meadow View Care Centre, it will mean a loss of open countryside and views of the countryside from the A6.

But the site’s prospective developers have stated that, following a landscape and visual impact assessment, a substantial part of the southern field will remain open and undeveloped to ensure that the views and openness of the area are protected.

In its design and access statement, Planning Design Practice Ltd states that the Darley Dale site is a suitable location for new development as it lies within a mile-and-a-half of Matlock town centre and has very good public transport links, with more than three buses an hour at peak times between Matlock and Darley Dale.

Planning Design Practice Ltd’s assessment of key planning issues states that: “It is assessed that the development would have only a minor adverse effect upon local landscape which has a mix of urban and rural influences.

“The visual effect upon local viewpoints is generally assessed as negligible or minor adverse from the west and minor adverse from the east. There is little visibility of the site from the north and south”

Developers state that the site is especially suitable for older residents as it is reasonably level, and points to a strong demand for bungalows to cater for an aged population which is expected to increase significantly.

To view the plans, visit www.derbyshiredales.gov.uk/planning-a-building-control/view-planning-applications.