page_title: Medlar-with-Wesham
section_title: Urban development
hierarchical_section_title: Medlar-with-Wesham / Urban development
caption_attribution_description: English: Medlar-with-Wesham. Looking east down Mowbreck Lane towards Mowbreck Hall, from the entrance to the Hospital Rehabilitation Centre. The original Mowbreck Hall, owned by the Westby family for over 500 years, and a Catholic stronghold, although now lost and re-built, was reputed to be haunted and has links with Shakespeare. Mowbreck Hall Farm, nearby, remains. Mowbreck lane may be followed to Treales.
context_page_description: Medlar-with-Wesham is a village, civil parish and an electoral ward on the Fylde in Lancashire, England. It lies within the Borough of Fylde, and had a population of 3,245 in 1,294 households recorded in the 2001 census. rising to 3,584 at the 2011 Census.
context_section_description: In recent years the town has seen three large housing developments: the first on greenfield land adjacent to the former Wesham Park Hospital (at which permission for 74 dwellings was granted only on appeal – "Alexandra Road"), the second with 208 houses on brownfield land at "Willow Fields" on part of the hospital site itself and a third with 109 houses at "Crossing Gates" on greenfield land between Fleetwood Road and Weeton Road. The building work at the Willow Fields site has yet to be completed.
  An application was made in 2008 for outline planning permission for a development of up to 264 houses on another greenfield site, adjacent to the Biological Heritage Site at Wesham Marsh, north of Mowbreck Lane. The application was made by land-owner Metacre, a company owned by Blackpool Tower owner Trevor Hemmings, and caused much controversy amongst many existing residents, being viewed as a real threat to the rural character of the town. A pressure group was formed, several well-attended public meetings were held and a petition signed by over 90% of households was delivered. A Landscape Character Assessment has been carried out by the Lancashire branch of CPRE and an ecological survey has revealed the presence of the Natterjack Toad and the Great Crested Newt.
  At the public meeting of the Fylde Borough Council Development Control Committee on 17 March 2010, the plan was unanimously rejected. In May 2010 the developer appealed against the decision, bringing the proposal before the Government Planning Inspector. The matter was the subject of a public inquiry which ran between 14 and 22 September 2010 at the United Reformed Church at Lytham St Annes. The appellant was represented by high-profile barrister Roger Lancaster. On 23 March 2011, it was announced that the appeal should be dismissed and planning permission refused.
  On 11 November 2011 a further application was received, from the same developer, proposing a development of 100 dwellings, on part of the same site, directly overlooking the recreation ground and allotments. Soon after, a new campaign to stop the plan was initiated by the Wesham Action Group. A public meeting took place on 11 January 2012, at the Community Centre, and unanimous opposition to the plan was strongly voiced. At their meeting on 12 September, the FBC Development Management Committee refused the application.
  On 9 November it was announced that an appeal against the refusal had been lodged and that the matter would be dealt with by another inquiry. The public inquiry, which was originally scheduled for four days, began on 19 February 2013, at Wesham Community Centre on Church Road, with Inspector Clive Sproule in the chair. Fylde Borough Council had announced, at short notice, that they would not attend and would not be submitting any evidence in opposition to the plan. The appellant was again represented by Roger Lancaster. In August 2013 it was announced that the Inspector had decided in favour of the appellant. Despite permission being granted at appeal, for the building of up to 100 new homes, on 2 December 2013 yet another outline application was submitted by the same developer for redevelopment of the site for up to 264 new dwellings. This application was refused.
  In November 2013 local businessman David Haythornthwaite announced plans for a £12 million development of land at Mill Farm adjacent to the A585. The plan included a 6,000 capacity stadium for A.F.C. Fylde, a Sports Science building, a full-sized football pitch, a full-sized hockey pitch, an industrial distribution centre, a hotel, an Aldi foodstore, a pub, a drive-through restaurant and a petrol filling station. A campaign group "Save Wesham and Kirkham" was formed to oppose the plan and a public meeting was arranged for 13 December, at Wesham Community Centre, to discuss the plan. Work began at the site in early 2015.
caption: Mowbreck Lane, leading to Treales
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