Phase 2, land east of Spinney Close, Whalley, Nr Clitheroe
Residential Development Land (S.T.P)
1.42 hectares ( 3.5 acres )
Offers invited
Location
The subject land is situated in a highly desirable position on the edge of Whalley, directly adjoining the established Oakhill School campus and Oakhill Leisure, which provides a modern gym and extensive indoor and outdoor sports facilities.
Whalley village centre is approximately a 10 minute walk away, where an excellent range of independent cafés, restaurants, pubs, boutique retailers and everyday convenience shopping combine to create one of the Ribble Valley’s most sought-after village environments. The village also benefits from a railway station with services on the Clitheroe–Manchester line, making it an attractive location for commuters.
The A59 is easily accessible, providing convenient connections to Clitheroe, Preston, Blackburn and Junction 31 of the M6, while the M65 is also within easy reach, ensuring excellent connectivity across Lancashire and the wider North West.
Description
The site is irregular in shape but broadly rectangular and extends to approximately 1.42 hectares (3.5 acres) being generally level in nature with hedge/tree lined boundaries. Access is provide from a private roadway which is anticipated to be adopted in due course.
The site lies within the defined settlement of Whalley, one of the three Principal Settlements in the Ribble Valley Core Strategy.
Pre-application advice was sought from Ribble Valley Borough Council in December 2021 for 15 large detached homes. This reflected the owner’s aspiration at the time for a scheme similar in scale and density to the adjoining executive development at The Oaks, which has since been delivered, rather than the capacity of the site. In our view the land offers scope for a greater number of dwellings, subject to planning. The meeting with the case officer was constructive. The matters raised were open space provision and affordable housing. No formal written response was issued.
The planning context has moved on considerably since then:
Housing need: the Core Strategy (2008 to 2028) is more than five years old, so housing need is now assessed using the Government’s standard method. Following the December 2024 NPPF this more than doubled the Borough’s annual requirement, from 130 to over 300 dwellings.
Housing land supply: the Council’s published position is a supply of 2.24 years as at 31 March 2026, against the five years required.
New NPPF: in any event, the revised NPPF published in August 2026 introduces a national policy that development within settlements should be approved unless the adverse effects would substantially outweigh the benefits. It also gives very limited weight to local plan policies that are materially inconsistent with national policy.
Given the time that has passed a fresh pre-application enquiry would be required. This information is provided for guidance only and gives no assurance that planning permission will be granted. Interested parties must make their own enquiries of the local planning authority Ribble Valley Borough Council (www.ribblevalley.gov.uk).
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