Plans for £11m housing, leisure and retail development at Belford Golf Club face refusal

Councillors will meet on Thursday to discuss an outline application by Moorlands Holdings (NE) Ltd for a housing, leisure and retail development at Belford Golf Club.

However, planning officers are recommending that members of the North Northumberland Local Area Committee refuse the application.

Club owners David and Michael Ratliff want to build 21 new homes – nine homes and 12 bungalows – around the nine-hole course.

Plans for a farm and hardware shop, offices, two tennis courts, an extended clubhouse, new golf driving range, crazy golf course, children’s play park and micro-brewery also form part of the proposal.

The scheme, submitted last October, is a scaled-back version of a £12m application refused by Northumberland County Council in 2021. The previous application proposed 37 homes.

The latest submission is up before councillors following agreement between the applicant and the head of planning after the previous application was refused by planners under delegated powers.

The revised application has split opinion, with 44 letters of support welcoming investment into the village and the prospect of new jobs.

But there are also 39 objections, along with concerns raised by several statutory consultees including Belford Parish Council and Historic England.

A 29-page report to members by Jon Sharp, senior planning officer, outlines 10 reasons for refusing the application.

They include its failure to preserve the significance and setting of Grade I listed Belford Hall, the potential ecological impact on wildlife, concerns about surface water drainage and flood risk and highway safety.