Land near Emsworth earmarked for 34 new homes has been purchased by a developer

Radian Group has announced it has acquired the land east of Breach Avenue in Southbourne, on the outskirts of Emsworth.

The group has already secured permission to build 34 new homes on the site.

Chichester District Council initially refused planning permission for the development in 2017, but a government-appointed planning inspector overturned the decision at appeal.

The council launched a High Court challenge and subsequently took the case to the Court of Appeal – but both legal challenges were dismissed.

Radian Group will now be working on a reserved matters application in the coming months, a spokesman for the company confirmed.

They said the development would include affordable and shared ownership homes.

Steve Taylor, head of land and planning at Radian Group, said: ‘We are pleased to have acquired this site, as it is an important part of our strategy to secure land-led schemes.

‘Opportunities like this will better enable us to control the delivery and quality of the homes we build, which will ultimately benefit our customers.’

Radian’s own house builders will construct the development, with an approximate start date of autumn 2020.