A proposal to build up to seven new homes on the outskirts of Wisbech has been dismissed by a planning inspector, after West Norfolk Borough Council had already rejected the scheme.
The plan would have seen a new row of houses go up on Burrettgate Road in Walsoken, just 100m from the Norfolk-Cambridgeshire border.
The council refused the proposal in August 2021, saying it was “outside the defined development area of Walsoken” and would therefore be “to the detriment of the appearance and character of the countryside”.
The authority added that the plans should have included a mechanism to ensure at least some of the homes were classed as affordable.
The developer then appealed that decision with the Planning Inspectorate, but was knocked back after a verdict issued on May 17 found in favour of the council.
Inspector Philip Mileham noted the road has no footpath or streetlighting, and the homes’ new residents would be dependent on cars to access services. He added that the development would “erode the sense of transition between the edge of Wisbech and the surrounding countryside”.
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