Drama as council debate is halted on former Melton hospital site housing plans

The scheme at the old St Mary’s Hospital on Thorpe Road had already attracted opposition from campaigners who wanted to save former 19th century vagrant cells for future generations.

The applicant, Homes England, was proposing to demolish the cells to make way for 38 residential properties, as well converting an old workhouse building and associated wings into eight further homes.

But before members of Melton Borough Council’s planning committee could begin discussing whether to grant planning permission they were told about a late submission from Leicestershire County Council, which was demanding that the developer pays far more than it was offering towards infrastructure to support the development.

Jim Worley, the council’s assistant director for planning and housing delivery, read out an email from County Hall - received just an hour before the meeting - which stated that the authority would resort to legal action if councillors approved the plans without demanding that Homes England pay more than £600,000 towards the infrastructure rather than the £67,000 it was offering towards education, health and civic amenities.

Mr Worley told members: “I feel we should defer the application to consider this threat of legal action from the county council, which is unprecedented from my recent memory.”

Chair, Councillor Margaret Glancy, agreed but described the late intervention as ‘very sad news’.

A report which went before the committee stated that the £67,000 offered towards infrastucture was considered as the highest amount which could reasonably be charged to the applicant if the development was to remain financially viable.

The decision to defer gave a stay of execution to the former vagrant cells, which date back to 1895 to a time when being homeless on the streets was considered a crime.

Councillor Pam Posnett suggested that the council looks at some of the ideas suggested by campaigners to retain the cells, either on the Thorpe Road site or elsewhere in the town, before the planning application is next heard.

She told the meeting: “We should look at some of these alternative proposals for the vagrant cells.

“Sone would work and some wouldn’t but we should get some proper costings on them.

“The council does not have a lot of money to spend on this but perhaps some of the residents would like to consider doing some crowdfunding to pay for it.”

Councillors decided unanimously to defer the application for thorough consideration of the infrastructure funding demands made by the county council highways department.