A plan to add nine homes to a 53 home estate in Binfield has been rejected due to concerns over flooding.

Developers JPP Land Ltd submitted a plan to build nine homes at land north of Tilehurst Lane in Binfield.

These homes would have been added to a 53 home development which had been rejected by Bracknell Forest Council’s planning committee but approved on appeal in September 2019.

However, JPP Land failed to convince members its flooding strategy would be effective.

Planning agent Douglas Bond argued the developers had provided detailed hydraulic modelling to dispel flooding concerns.

Mr Bond said: “We’ve gone above and beyond!”

He said adaptations to the plan included putting the homes on higher ground, redesigning the gardens for two homes for better floodwater management, and enlarging a drainage pond in an effort to alleviate the concerns of the committee.

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But David Phillips, a resident, argued that existing drains and gulleys in the area are “at the capacity” and adding nine homes would make the situation worse.

Councillor Ankur Shiv Bhandari, a representative of the area, said: “It really concerns me that we are playing with a big degree of risk on a site that is at the bottom of a hill.

“We haven’t been provided with certainty that the risk can be mitigated.”

Cllr Bhandari (Conservative,  Binfield with Warfield) submitted a motion to refuse the application, which was refused by three votes to two.

The decision was made at a physical meeting of the committee on Wednesday, March 9.

Cllr Michael Brossard (Conservative, Central Sandhurst), the vice-chairman of the committee, disagreeing with the majority, said planning officer Jo Male had written a “comprehensive” report that gave him the “confidence” to support approving it.

Furthermore, cllr Paul Bidwell (Labour, Old Bracknell) said: “We do live in an age, especially in Bracknell, where housing is desperately needed.

“As long as the [flood] mitigation has been accepted by a recognised body and the planning department, I have no hesitation to be in favour of this.”

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The nine home plan has already been discussed twice within the last six months.

It was first discussed in November last year, with committee members voting to refuse it after neighbour Peter Kopik raised fears his home could be flooded. 

It reappeared in a meeting in February this year, with the committee raising flooding fears again.

However, the committee could not officially reject the plan because they were operating on a virtual, advisory basis.

If a council has a virtual meeting, councillors can only agree with officer recommendations – if councillors go against officer recommendations, the decision has to be made at a physical meeting.

JPP Land wanted to build six four-bedroom and three three-bedroom homes.