New twist in the tale of a controversial housing development in Harborough

Land at the centre of an under-fire new homes scheme in Market Harborough could be about to be sold off to a major housing association behind it, by Harborough council.

The council has been planning to build 38 new homes at Naseby Square, off Stuart Road, in Market Harborough alongside huge Midlands housing group Platform.

But now there’s a sudden new twist in the tale as they may be set to sell their chunk of the site to Platform – which already owns the rest of it.

Fury erupted in May 2018 when the shell-shocked tenants of 19 bungalows on the Southern Estate complex got a letter from Platform saying their homes were to be demolished.

But now the controversial redevelopment on the former garage site faces being scuppered as it stands at the moment by the coronavirus crisis.

Harborough council has said it is “considering selling its part of a site at Naseby Close in Market Harborough which has been earmarked for redevelopment”.

The authority’s Cabinet has “agreed in principle” to “explore the sale of its part of the land to the Platform Housing Group, which owns the rest of the site”.

The Cabinet is the council’s powerful decision-making body and is chaired by its leader, Cllr Phil King.

“Councillors agreed a report would come back to the Cabinet for a final decision later this year.

“The council said it is refocusing its priorities in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic,” said the authority.

“A planning application will be considered by Harborough District Council later this year to reflect the Cabinet’s decision.”

A Platform Housing Group spokeswoman said: “I can confirm that Platform Housing Group are currently undertaking discussions with Harborough District Council regarding the future development of Naseby Square and no decisions in this respect have yet been made.

“Once any decision has been made, we will of course, issue an update to the media.”

Last November Sue McDonald, 73, who helps to run Naseby Square Tenants’ Action Group, vowed that they would “fight tooth and nail” to save their embattled homes.

She told the Harborough Mail: “We’ll fight the second Battle of Naseby to save our homes from the axe.

“If Platform and the council thought we’d just roll over and die then they can think again because we aren’t going anywhere.”