Consultation launched on plans to build homes on site of former Sheffield refractory

Plans to build up to 300 new houses on a derelict site in Sheffield’s Loxley Valley have been handed in to the council.
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Developer Patrick Properties wants to create a sustainable new community on the long-abandoned factory site along the River Loxley, less than half a mile from Sheffield’s border with the Peak District National Park.

The firm says it is the only way of funding a clean-up of the derelict refractory works which were abandoned by Hepworths in the early 1990s.

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The plans include family and starter homes, public squares, a community woodland area, an ‘aspiration’ to plant new trees for every new house, children’s play areas, two tennis courts, cycle hire, a bus every 15 minutes and a public green. The millpond would be retained.

Work has started on demolishing the Old Hepworth Refactory in the Loxley ValleyWork has started on demolishing the Old Hepworth Refactory in the Loxley Valley
Work has started on demolishing the Old Hepworth Refactory in the Loxley Valley

The Campaign to Protect Rural England has already objected.

It says building homes on the ‘brickworks’ site would create an isolated village and an unsustainable enclave, forcing people to use cars.

Local residents are also objecting, warning of traffic chaos and flood risks.

One on Studfield Hill said: “There are four routes to the proposed site all of which will increase traffic considerably with 500-plus cars.

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“The main exit route will presumably be via Malin Bridge, which already has a very bad traffic problem and poor air quality.

“The other routes through Stannington, Rodney Hill and Ben Lane will likewise suffer the effects of the heavy traffic, the latter being past Loxley Primary School.

“The area is a flood plain and will flood again probably with increasing frequency as the climate changes.”

Another resident on Loxley Road said: “The impact on the flood plain and risks both at the site and effects this might have further down the valley. Water runs over this site in heavy rains.

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“There’s a lack of facilities, shops, schools and doctors. The increase in traffic will cause further issues at places which are already problematic such as Malin Bridge.”

Planning officers are studying the application, which can be viewed at bit.ly/2LKAWLy