Plans for up to 141 homes at Compstall Mills keep two buildings and replace Albert Mill, which the draft Local Plan says should stay. Comments close 9 November.

A plan for up to 141 homes at Compstall Mills is open for comment until Monday 9 November. It would keep two of the old mill buildings and clear the rest, including Albert Mill.

That puts it at odds with the council’s own draft policy for the site. The policy names Albert Mill among the buildings that must, as a minimum, be kept and converted.

The outline application, reference DC/100094, was lodged on 2 September and validated on 28 September (Stockport Council planning register). The applicant is Compstall Mill 2025 Limited. Its planning statement describes the company as a group of local business people who live in the area.

What is proposed

The application is in outline, with every detail reserved, so the layout is illustrative. The planning statement’s indicative scheme is:

Building Homes
Victoria Mill, converted 39 flats
Albert House, a new block on the site of Albert Mill and Albert Shed 48 flats
The Gatehouse, converted 6 flats
Noah House, a new block 6 flats
Scotland Homes, three-bed terraces facing Andrew Street 18 houses
River Homes, three-bed terraces beside the River Etherow 24 houses
Total 141

That is 99 flats and 42 houses. The plan also shows:

  • 1,812 square metres of public green space and 1,776 of private gardens
  • 123 parking spaces, which the applicant’s consultation report puts at a 90% ratio to homes
  • a new two-metre footway inside the site along Andrew Street
  • lower boundary walls and new paths into Etherow Country Park, and opened-up routes along the River Etherow

The draft legal agreement offers 50% affordable housing. It also covers open space, a travel plan and biodiversity net gain (S106 heads of terms). The Etherow Country Park Sailing Club, which uses part of the site, would stay.

Which buildings go

The applicant’s demolition plan marks only two existing buildings to keep: Victoria Mill and the Gatehouse. Every other building on the plan is hatched for demolition, including the long range along Andrew Street (demolition plan).

The planning statement says the buildings to be demolished “all make a positive contribution” to the site’s historic interest. Its justification is cost and condition. It says a viability assessment shows it is “not commercially viable to retain all buildings on site”, and that several are in poor repair and have suffered arson attacks (supporting planning statement).

One line in the same statement lists the “retention of Albert Mill and Gatehouse building”. The rest of it, and the demolition plan, keep Victoria Mill instead and put a new block where Albert Mill stands.

What the draft Local Plan says

The site is allocated for housing in the council’s draft Local Plan as Policy HOM 2.12. Its wording was corrected at Cabinet on 15 September. The policy says redevelopment should keep and convert the 19th-century mill buildings “as far as possible”. It then sets a floor (Stockport Council):

As a minimum, the highest significance assets, as identified in the Compstall Mills Planning Brief (2008) and including Albert Mill, Scotland Mill Engine House Complex and Office (Lodge/Gatehouse), shall be retained and converted into new uses.

Any demolition needs “clear and convincing” justification, the policy adds. The draft plan is out for comment until 8 November and has not been adopted. Our Local Plan story has the background.

The same policy says about 40% of the site lies in Flood Zone 3, beside the River Etherow. Homes there are only allowed if they pass the national exception test, backed by a flood risk assessment. The application includes one.

The site’s history

Compstall Mills sits in the Compstall Conservation Area, next to Etherow Country Park. It is not listed, but several of its buildings are on the council’s local list. The site covers about 1.9 hectares.

The council approved a scheme for 121 homes, commercial units, a boathouse and a hydro-electric generator in May 2013, reference DC/042235. The statement says that permission was never used and lapsed, and the site was sold.

What residents told the developer

The applicant held a drop-in at the Etherow Country Park café on 18 June, after a letter drop to more than 500 homes. Its consultation report records 174 people attending and 71 feedback forms (statement of community involvement).

Of those 71 forms, 17 explicitly backed the plans. The commonest concerns were:

  • pedestrian safety on Andrew Street and the narrow bridge over the Etherow (39 forms)
  • extra traffic (38 forms)
  • pressure on schools, doctors and roads (24 forms)
  • parking in the village (14 forms)

What it means for you

  • You can comment until Monday 9 November, the neighbour consultation expiry date on the register. Search for DC/100094 on the council’s planning site.
  • The council’s target date for a decision is 28 December. An outline consent would fix the principle and the maximum number of homes; the design would come back later as reserved matters.
  • If the mill buildings matter to you, the heritage case is the live question. Comments that address which buildings are kept, and why, go to the heart of the policy test.

More applications across the borough are on our Stockport planning news page.

Sources