Plans for five new homes in Beech Way, Woodbridge, rejected due to potential impact on area’s character amid the Deben Valley

Plans for five new homes at the edge of a town have been refused due to their potential impact on the area’s character.

East Suffolk Council rejected Julian Kingston-Smith’s proposals for land off Beech Way, Woodbridge, between numbers 15 and 17 on Monday.

A refusal notice cited six factors for its denial, including the development’s potential to erode the ‘special visual contribution’ of the Deben Valley to the area’s setting.

Planners said the new properties would cause ‘unjustifiable harm to the character and appearance of the area’.

They also said the proposed homes would harm the historical setting of the nearby Grade II-listed Kingston Hall and Kingston Barn.

The notice argued a reduction to the hall and barn’s significance ‘represents an unacceptable degree of unjustifiable harm’ to the area’s historic environment.

It added the public benefits of the proposed homes would not outweigh this harm.

Planners also said that, as the development would ‘significantly alter’ the forward view for single-storey Beech Way properties, it would cause ‘an unacceptable degree of harm’ to residential amenity.

Woodbridge Town Council recommended refusal of the application, citing similar factors to planners as well as potential effects on wildlife including the turtle dove, water vole and house sparrow.

Eight public comments of objection were submitted, which raised concerns over the negative impact on views towards the river valley, local biodiversity and the historic environment.

Two neutral representations were received.

Find out planning notices that affect you via the Public Notice Portal.

The applicants can appeal to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.