A CUSTOM-build project consisting of 27 homes in the green belt that is described as the borough's first ever zero carbon development has been given approval this evening.

The site is Kemps Farm off Dennis's Lane in South Ockendon and was detailed in a Thurrock Nub News story earlier this month. Potential residents on the site will buy plots and then build their own homes, all of which must be zero carbon homes and environmentally friendly.

Despite a recommendation from officers to reject the scheme, it was approved by all but one of the nine members of tonight's (Thursday, 25 February) planning committee.

The only objection came from Ockendon councillor Sue Shinnock, though her fellow Labour ward councillor, Mike Fletcher, did back it. Though approval has been granted, under the council's constitution the scheme has to come back to the next planning meeting after officers have had the chance to consider the councillors' reasons for overruling their views.

A presentation about the scheme was given to the meeting by senior planning officer Matthew Gallagher who gave a heavily weighted presentation in favour of rejection.

He told members: "It is highly likely there will be harm to the green belt. That is our view," and he listed a number of reasons why.

He told members it is' apparent from the submitted indicative drawings that built development and accompanying curtilages, parking etc. would occupy a large part of the site. The proposals would comprise a substantial amount of new built development on predominantly open green belt land. Consequently, there would be clear harm to openness'.

He spoke about the relationship between the new development and an existing listed farmhouse, saying: "It's a reasonable assumption to make that a future layout would have an impact on a heritage asset."

However, Cllr Angela Lawrence disagreed with that and said: "How can you make a judgement that it has impacted negatively on the heritage of the site in relation to existing listed buildings when it is only an outline proposal. It's one person's view, it could be bad or it could be really good. We don't know.

Cllr Gerard Rice picked up that theme and said: "You talk about these listed buildings and the harm it's going to do but surely you know the lower Thames crossing is going to go close to the site and the M25 is already near. Are they not making an impact on these listed sites?"

Mr Gallager pointed out they were national infrastructure issues on a different scale.

Cllr Lawrence pressed home her support for the project saying: "Thinking about design and heritage we know it has to be in keeping and the applicant has already shown that by doing phase one that blends in. That gives us confidence.

"It appears we are not trying to work with the applicant to make this work. I am sure the council has been instructed to give support to self-build homes and this applicant has shown he can be trusted to show he can build in a good way.

"I think we have to have a bit of an open mind here and work with this rather than say 'no, no, no!' The council have to give custom builders the areas to build."

Cllr Sue Sammons said: "It's a zero carbon build and the people are going to be sympathetic with that and already own electric vehicles. People like something that's a little bit different, not run of the mill. I think carbon zero is something the council should be supporting, not going against."

Cllr Gary Byrne, often a critic of schemes in the green belt was also a supporter, saying: "I love zero neutral, this ticks every single box for me." However, he did suggest councillors should visit the site and see it for themselves, but other members felt that wasn't necessary.

Committee chair Cllr Tom Kelly appeared to be a fan, saying: "The fact is that is you go past you can barely make out the site. I can't see how it will have a visual impact on the countryside. In terms of its remote location there are already homes there. Ultimately as we have seen in the past, sometimes remote locations work.

"We have approved things like this before, for example the Langdon Hills site and the St Luke's site."

Members heard a presentation from the developer's agent, James Bompas, who said: "Thurrock Council publicly declared a Climate Emergency on 23 October 2019. In doing so, it made a commitment to take urgent action. The borough has committed to being carbon net-zero by 2030.

"In tackling this, what other development projects can you point to in the borough acting upon this motion? How are the mainstream housebuilders supporting you?

"What better than a scheme with proven quality.

"And, what better than a custom-build scheme, where people are typically passionate about supporting the environment and embracing the latest sustainable building methods and technology?

"This is a green belt site and must be considered on that basis. However, we strongly believe the benefits outweigh the harm.

"The scheme will provide custom-build housing for the residents of Thurrock in an area where development has previously been considered acceptable.

"The pandemic has shaped these proposals. Last year, we saw first-hand that people were spending significantly more time at home. Now, in Lockdown three, people are spending more money on their homes.

"People are investing in home offices, fitness and well-being space, educational space, and the latest communication technology. This scheme embraces all these things. Purchasers will be able to build the home that works for them. Not what Bellway or Persimmon tell them they have to have.

"I want to summarise how the proposals will work. You buy a serviced plot. Costs are likely to be in the region of £150,000. You then apply for your own planning permission. This must be in accordance with the Design Code submitted with the application, but you will have the ability to customise.

"What will remain non-negotiable is your home must be zero carbon on occupation, as assessed by Building Regulations. You then build at a pace that your finances allow. All of these commitments are bound within a unilateral undertaking."

Mr Bompas' comments appeared to reinforce the growing belief that this is a good scheme and in the end, it won approval.