'Beneficial' plans for 115 flats set for rejection

Plans to build 115 flats on brownfield land in Stoke-on-Trent are set to be turned down, after council officers said insufficient detail had been provided.

Four blocks are proposed for the site off Woodhouse Street in Stoke, which had previously been a bus depot, industrial site and even the rectory for Stoke Minster.

A report said the recommendation to the city council's planning committee on Wednesday was "unfortunate" as the scheme had potential benefits for the area.

But it said the applicants had failed to provide sufficient information on issues like parking, flooding and preventing crime.

Highways officials raised doubts about whether sufficient car parking had been provided.

Police had concerns over a sunken seating area in the central courtyard, which would double up as a flood prevention feature, but which officers feared would become a magnet for anti-social behaviour.

In email to officers in November, architects working on the proposal attempted to answer some of the shortcomings, but said the police objections "appear to be very ambiguous and subjective".

They said the design allowed "good-quality public space" with visibility from the flats.

Planning officials said the developer had been offered "ample opportunity" to provide more information about the scheme, but that without it, they could not recommend its approval to the committee.

The report suggested that the applicant should "seek pre-application advice" if re-submitting the plans in the future.

This news was gathered in part by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.

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