Landscape lane road sign

Renewed opposition to proposed new housing development in Newport

A revised bid to build 12 houses with vehicle and pedestrian access on the edge of Newport has met with renewed backlash.

Newport and Carisbrooke Community Council and 13 members of the public have filed objecting comments against Mrs C Ferns’ proposed development of land at Landscape Lane.

Criticisms of the application include concerns around road safety, pressure on infrastructure, parking space availability and the loss of greenfield land and wildlife.

Revised proposal
The revised proposal, re-advertised with a site notice on the Isle of Wight council’s planning portal on 26th September 2024, includes three bungalows, two four bed houses, five three bed houses and two two bed houses.

Recent revisions include an adjusted site boundary and general revisions to the application’s block plan, made public in September.

Mrs Ferns’ attempts to develop the field adjacent to Landscape’s Lane’s hedgerow stretch back to December 2021.

An increasing need for housing
Her application’s most recent statement supporting development was published on 27th June 2024.

The Phil Salmon Planning Ltd document said,

“There is an increasing need for housing in sustainable locations.

“This application promotes a scheme that is fully policy compliant whilst enhancing highways safety.”

Objection from local council
In a comment on 10th October, Newport and Carisbrooke Community Council said the application would alter the rural appearance of the area, having a “catastrophic effect” on the lane.

The council’s submission said,

“This development does not provide any housing that there is a local need for and if approved, this application could result in the loss of farmland for food production.”

Newport resident Helen Denness said in a comment published this week,

“There is still inadequate provision of footways for the scheme to be safe for pedestrians and is therefore contrary to the Isle of Wight Core Strategy Policy DM2 Design Quality for New Development.”

Infrastructure concerns
Joni Ade, who lives on the nearby Staplers Road, said,

“It is such a shame that this is still ongoing. Our infrastructure cannot support this development.

“Staplers Road and Long Lane are already suffering extremely heavy traffic particularly at rush hours.

“Cars and buses travel up and down Staplers at frightening speeds, way above the speed limit, using the roundabout at the bottom as a springboard.

“I expect the same can be said of Long Lane. There are regularly dead red squirrels, hedgehogs and other small animals in the road.”


This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may have been made by OnTheWight. Ed