Flintshire councillors asked to back 300-home scheme in Hawarden
Flintshire councillors will decide next week whether to approve plans for 300 homes in Hawarden as part of a major development off Gladstone Way and Ash Lane.
The application, submitted by Castle Green Homes, includes 105 affordable homes, public open space, new roads, footpaths and landscaping. The land is allocated for housing in Flintshire’s adopted Local Development Plan (LDP).
Planning officers have recommended the application be approved at the council’s planning committee meeting on Tuesday 11 June.
The proposed development has drawn significant public opposition, with 684 formal objections submitted directly to the council.
Campaigners say that, when petitions and letters are included, over 2,500 objections have been lodged.
Concerns raised include the impact on local infrastructure, traffic, healthcare, schools, drainage and the character of the area.
Hawarden Community Council and Queensferry Community Council have both objected.
They say the scale of the development is not in keeping with the local area and warn that schools, GP services and drainage infrastructure are already under strain.
Hawarden Community Council highlighted regular flooding in parts of lower Mancot and Sandycroft and expressed concern that surface water from the development could worsen the situation.
Campaigners have also raised concerns about the merging of Hawarden and Mancot, arguing that the loss of green space between the two communities would erode their individual identities.
Local member Councillor Sam Swash, who has requested committee determination and a site visit, has previously said the level of local opposition “represents the culmination of landowners, private developers, the County Council, and the Welsh Government teaming up in the interests of private profit at the expense of the residents of Hawarden and Mancot.”
Plaid Cymru MS Llyr Gruffydd also previously said that while there is a need for new homes, the development “is far from being suitable for a community like Hawarden.”
The proposed housing estate will join the villages of Hawarden and Mancot to create what Mr Gruffydd has described as “a single sprawling conurbation.”
Council planning officers say the development meets policy requirements, including the delivery of affordable housing, education contributions and ecological enhancements.
The scheme includes two vehicular access points, one from Gladstone Way and one from Ash Lane, with no through route for cars between them. This is designed to prevent rat-running through the estate. A new network of pedestrian and cycle links is also proposed.
A Section 106 legal agreement would secure:
- £625,107 for improvements at Hawarden Village School
- £941,919 towards expansion at Hawarden High School
- Delivery of 105 affordable homes across different tenures
- Provision and maintenance of play areas
- A Habitat Management Plan to enhance biodiversity
The affordable homes would be a mix of one to four-bedroom properties, and all would be tenure-blind, meaning they would be visually indistinguishable from market housing.
The development is near St Deiniol’s Ash, a Grade I listed building.
A landscape buffer and tree planting are proposed to mitigate any visual impact. Council officers say the development would have a low impact on the setting of the listed building.
A range of environmental and ecological assessments have been submitted.
These include plans to retain existing hedgerows and trees, plant new wildflower meadows and install bat and bird boxes.
A lighting strategy will also be required to protect local bat populations.
The site lies in Flood Zone 1, which Natural Resources Wales classifies as having a low risk of flooding.
A sustainable drainage system (SuDS) will be required before development can proceed, and any necessary sewerage upgrades will be determined by a hydraulic modelling assessment already underway.
Concerns around land stability linked to historic coal mining activity are being addressed through site investigations and remediation plans, which will be secured by planning condition.
The planning committee will meet on Tuesday 11 June to consider the application.
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