Plans for around 260 new homes on the northern edge of Penrith have taken a step forward after developers formally asked the council to decide whether the scheme needs a full Environmental Impact Assessment before any planning application is submitted.
The proposal, known as Fairways Phase 3, would sit on agricultural land east of Inglewood Road and continue the wider expansion of housing on the northern side of the town.
Submitted on behalf of Story Homes, the request asks Westmorland and Furness Council to issue a screening opinion for the development, which would include around 260 dwellings made up of two to six-bedroom properties along with affordable housing, open space, landscaping, drainage features and a potential community building.
The site covers just over 10 hectares and forms part of the next stage of the Fairways scheme, following on from earlier completed phase one and currently under construction phase two.
Access is proposed from Inglewood Road, with a second link into the existing Fairways road network connecting through to Salkeld Road. Pedestrian routes would also be provided linking into Green Lane and surrounding areas.
The land is currently used for grazing and sits between existing and emerging housing and Penrith Golf Club. It is identified in local planning documents as a future growth area for the town.
Because of its size, the development exceeds national thresholds that require the council to consider whether it could have significant environmental effects, meaning an EIA screening decision is now needed before any full application can progress.
Developers argue the scheme does not require a full Environmental Impact Assessment, pointing to its location next to existing housing development and the fact it is not within any nationally designated landscape or protected environmental area.
They say potential impacts such as traffic, drainage, ecology, flood risk and loss of agricultural land can be managed through the normal planning process and detailed assessments if a full application comes forward.
At this stage, no planning application has been submitted.
The council’s decision on the screening request will determine the next step, with a full application expected if the scheme is allowed to proceed.
If approved, the development would add a significant number of new homes to the northern expansion of Penrith, continuing the steady growth of the Fairways scheme. Story Homes has also indicated plans for a potential community centre, subject to sufficient interest and an organisation willing to take it on. Similar proposals elsewhere in the area have previously struggled to secure long-term management arrangements.
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