Gatley Golf Club housing plans rejected by councillors

Stockport Council’s Planning & Highways Regulation Committee have rejected outline planning permission for a housing development of over 270 new homes to go ahead at Gatley Golf Club.

Plans were first tabled in 2021 to seek planning permission a development of 278 new homes on the 44-acre golf course, which straddles the railway line between Manchester and Wilmslow.

Land promoter, Hollins Strategic Land (HSL) brought forward plans, which would have included 50% affordable housing provision, on behalf of owners, Gatley Golf Club, who find the site is no longer financially viable as a private course.

Outline plans for redevelopment of the site included a mix of one- to four-bedroom homes, with a focus on retirement properties and bungalows for the borough’s older residents. Around 26 acres of the site would also have remained undeveloped as public open space, including green walkways and wildlife corridors. The density of housing on the site had also been reduced from almost 300 dwellings in the original submission.

Stockport Council’s planning officers had recommended approval for the plans, agreeing with developers that the loss of green space was outweighed by the benefits of the development in meeting the borough’s housing needs. Councillors sitting on Stockport’s Planning & Highways Regulation Committee, however, disagreed, and voted down proposals over the loss of green space in the borough following a lengthy discussion when the committee met on 8th February.