Plans for flats in Cradley Heath town centre revived

The move would see two new homes and 13 flats built off Lower High Street in Cradley Heath.

The plans have been revived after the work was never carried out despite receiving permission from planners at Sandwell Council in 2021.

The five-storey block would be built next to Compton Grange, a 35-home sheltered housing complex run by the council according to the application by Jason Shaw.

The near-acre plot was put up for sale at the end of last year with a £425,000 asking price.

Housing plans for the land off Lower High Street in Cradley Heath were first mooted in 2015 when an application for 20 flats and two houses was put forward but later withdrawn.

A second attempt was made in 2019 but the slightly smaller move to build 19 flats was rejected by Sandwell Council over concerns about the design and scale of the building.

The local authority’s planners criticised the apartment block’s “poor design” and said it was “out of scale and character” for the area.

The building’s height, which stretched to five storeys at the rear but appeared as two storeys from the main road, was also of concern to the council’s planners who said it would lead to a loss of light and outlook for neighbours.

A total of 14 objections were made against the plan.

The plans were revived in 2020 when another planning application was put forward but with the number of flats reduced to 13.

The scaled-down plans were given the green light by Sandwell Council but, without work starting, the three-year planning permission expired.