The Banks Group wants to build 900 houses on 49 hectares of land west of Brunton Lane, 700m south west of Havannah Nature Reserve.

Wildlife corridors run to the south, west and north of the site, which includes 82 trees, 13 hedgerows. Many of the hedgerows have been in place since 1945 and the south east corner of the site lies within the Ouseburn Catchment Wildlife Corridor. 

The proposed development would necessitate the removal of trees and hedgerows. It would also result in loss of habitat for Brown Hare and red listed bird species, such as Skylark, Lapwing, Linnet, Grasshopper Warbler and Yellowhammer, as well as loss of good quality agricultural land.

The Local Plan allocated land at NN4b and NN4c for 600 houses. An application for 900 houses on this site alone (NN4b) would see a significant uplift in housing numbers.

Newcastle City Council is already well ahead of house building targets so there is no justification for such a huge development.

We can’t stop development from going ahead, but we can make Banks think twice about shoehorning in extra houses at the expense of wildlife and green space. 

Please sign the petition asking Newcastle City Council to refuse planning application 2019/0666/01/OUT until it is brought in line with the local plan.

It is vital that you also email your objection to planning.control@newcastle.gov.uk, quoting the planning application reference.