A second attempt to build dozens of homes on a wedge of empty land in a Nottinghamshire village has been refused.
Back in August 2025, Stones Sankey Developments submitted plans to Ashfield District Council to build 42 homes on an empty patch of land between 191 and 243 Nottingham Road, Selston.
The developer wanted to build 13 two-bedroom properties, 24 three-beds and five four-beds as part of a mix of detached, semi-detached and terraced homes, with all planned as being for sale on the open market.
But the housebuilder hit a setback later that year, when the authority’s planning team rejected the development, with officers concerned the homes would result in the “loss of a substantial area of the local wildlife site” without justification.
It was also refused over “insufficient” information being provided relating to flooding and flood risk to homes, whether there was safe access and the “poor layout” potentially leading to a “cramped and “overdeveloped” scheme.
The developer later lodged an appeal against the council’s decision in May this year, arguing the development “comprises the optimal number” for a balanced estate and that it would maintain the character of the surroundings.
Now, the government’s Planning Inspectorate has “dismissed” the appeal, re-citing the “cramped” potential of homes and stating the layout of properties put forward for the northern half of the site would “fail” to look similar to neighbouring homes, acting as a “harmful addition” to the area.
The Planning Inspectorate concluded they were working with “limited” information, said parking arrangements would be “visually intrusive” and that the development could have a potentially harmful effect on protected species’ habitats.
When lodging the appeal, the developer argued while it accepts the homes would develop “part of the open space” that the land offers, the negatives of building on it needed to be balanced with the benefits of new homes in the area, given the council cannot currently demonstrate a five-year housing supply.
In the report, the Planning Inspectorate concluded that the authority’s housing land supply stood at 4.39 years, the shortfall was not “considerable”, adding: “There is no evidence before me that the council is not going to be able to address the shortfall in the short term.”
By Lauren Monaghan, Local Democracy Reporter
