Building homes on the hillside above a flood-hit Derbyshire town will improve and not worsen the risk of it flooding, say council officials.
At a Derbyshire Dales District Council meeting last night (December 13) plans from Richborough Estates and Statham Property Maintenance LLP for 75 homes off Chesterfield Road and Quarry Lane in Matlock were approved.
Much of the debate focused on the town’s flooding legacy, a position which worsen with climate change, and involves both rising river levels and water running off the Derbyshire Dales hillside and impermeable surfaces such as roads and concrete.
However, Chris Whitmore, the council’s development manager, said the scheme would lead to the “betterment” of the site’s current land drainage issues, which are currently uncontrolled.
He said: “In effect what the applicant is doing is they are intercepting and attenuating surface water on site and controlling discharge of greenfield runoff rates.
“We can be satisfied that the system has been modelled to cater for climate change and at the moment it is uncontrolled.
“We can be satisfied that drainage will be dealt with appropriately during construction and that surface water will be attenuated on site and will provide a betterment to prevent localised flooding in that area.”
Land drainage such as terraced swales and filters would be used to intercept and direct water running off the hillside, with water also caught and stored on-site in a flood attenuation pond, the plans detail.
Terraced swales are effectively trenches aimed to catch, store and channel water.
Colin Fowles, who lives near the site, told the meeting that the scheme would “totally change the lifestyle of the area”.
He said: “We have been able to look over a field and soon we would be looking over 70 houses.
“In Quarry Lane, houses have been there 130 years and we have built quite a lot of houses and totally changed the area.”
Marion Barton, a Quarry Lane resident, said: “The Quarry Lane residents are still suffering from the floods which occurred during the construction of the Thornberry estate. These have yet to be resolved.
“Residents would like the flood risk to be more seriously considered in the construction process as well as in the complete build.
“Quarry Lane homes are positioned below the proposed site, making them at risk to surface water flooding.
“Quarry Lane residents do not want our homes flooded as a result of a planning application being accepted as a result of surveys and advice which has fallen short of the current reality of the weather.”
Alan Piper, speaking on behalf of the trustees of Matlock Moor Methodist Church, which sits next to the site, said he shared the concerns of local people.
He said parking for the church had been a problem for years, with the site increasing in use since 2018, with some visitors opting not to come anymore due to the lack of safe and assigned spaces.
Mr Piper said the offer from the developer to assign land for six spaces purely for the church would be a “significant benefit especially for elderly and disabled people”.
Chris Lindley, agent for the applicant, said: “By comparison to other proposals in the area, this scheme has received a low level of objection and this reflects the approach of our technical evidence and commitment to effective consultation.”
He said the scheme would provide a “comprehensive package of benefits” and “comprehensive package of drainage methods”, building homes “in a time of pressing and significant need”.
Cllr David Hughes told the meeting: “In other developments in Matlock, following development, there has been flooding downhill of those sites.
“Before Treetops (the William Davis Homes scheme off Asker Lane) was built there was no flooding in Hurst Farm below Treetops – there is now.
“Castle View Primary School (off Chesterfield Road) had a dry field, it now has a field which floods and we want to avoid that happening.
“We need to avoid flooding downhill during build and after.”
Cllr Peter Slack said he had once been at the Bentley Brook pumping station 18 years ago and claims flood waters were so high it was almost coming through the floor and the station almost had to be abandoned.
He said: “With climate change increasing year on year this is a very dangerous area and more water being put into Bentley Brook is very very dangerous.”
Cllr Robert Archer spoke about an ongoing investigation into the water levels and ongoing issues with the Bentley Brook and felt it may be wiser to wait to make a decision on the application until the conclusion of that review.
He said: “We could look pretty stupid here if he say ‘ok let’s go ahead’ and the Environment Agency investigation comes back and updates their data.”
Cllr Sue Burfoot said: “There is a climate crisis and we are recommending 75 houses out of town.”
She said there would be more traffic pollution from the planned scheme and that Chesterfield Road was already “dangerous” and in need of a safe crossing.
Cllr Burfoot said: “Many residents in Matlock feel that enough is enough, they are fed up with what this planning committee is approving.
“It is a greenfield site, there is a detrimental visual impact on the area, the number of houses is disproportionate to the nature of the site.
“There are lots of reasons to refuse this application.”
Cllr Slack said: “We are putting more concrete down and now more development down and all this makes for quick run-off into the Bentley Brook catchment area.”
Authorities have requested a large sum of funds from the developers in order to offset the impact of the overall scheme, totalling nearly £670,000.
This includes nearly £590,000 for 21 secondary school spaces at Highfields School, £68,000 for healthcare improvements at Imperial Road Surgery in Matlock and Ivy Grove Surgery in Matlock, £5,300 for library services, £4,450 for providing allotments on a separate site and £3,750 for a travel plan.
Of the 75 homes, 23 would be classed as affordable housing, with 18 available for affordable rent and five for home ownership at a reduced price.
Council officers had concluded in a report for the meeting: “It is clear from the consideration of the main issues that the development should be approved as, subject to careful consideration of the reserved matters, there would be no significant adverse impacts or technical reasons to refuse planning permission that would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits arising from the provision of market and affordable housing.”
