HEREFORDSHIRE Council will not be going ahead with plans to build 45 new homes in Bromyard as it does not own all of the land it wants to develop.

The council, working with Keepmoat Homes, was wanting to knock down existing buildings at the old depot in Hereford Road, to make way for 45 homes, including affordable housing.

But despite already being approved, the planning application is set to be withdrawn due to issues over land ownership, a Bromyard and Winslow Town Council planning committee meeting was told.

Chair Roger Page said the council had now admitted it did not own all of the land, and objections lodged against the application say a strip of land belongs to Mr Jensen Jones.

"The depot site on the Hereford Road has been withdrawn, this is the deal, as you will know, Herefordshire Council has with the developer to develop council-owned land," Coun Page said on Monday.

"Keepmoat are the preferred developer who want that privilege on competition.

"The reason why it's been recommended to the cabinet member for formal withdrawal from the development plan and will therefore not proceed is because Herefordshire Council do not own the whole of the freehold of the site, within the red line which formed part of the detailed planning application."

He said for detailed planning applications, the applicant needs ownership of the land.

Landowner Mr Jones said objections to the development had already been made clear and the application was "flawed and inaccurate" due the issue with the boundary of the site.

Coun Page said: "In this particular instance, Herefordshire have now stated categorically that they do not have ownership of the whole site.

"That's information, I will ask members to comment in a moment, what I was proposing that in view of this we ask Herefordshire Council to consider reinstating the site as a north-east gritting depot for the county of Herefordshire, which it was up until five or six years ago."

Councillor Fred Clark supported Coun Page's view, and said a "small road repair team in there to assist maintaining the roads in Bromyard" would be beneficial.

Councillor Janette Cooper said that if this is not returned to a depot site, it should not have a revised housing plan as the town needs employment land "more desperately".

The planning committee agreed to recommend to full council that it writes to Herefordshire Council and ask them to bring back the north-east gritting service, a small road repair team, and to mark the land for employment.

Keepmoat Homes did not respond to the Hereford Times when approached about the development. Herefordshire Council has been contacted.