A PLAN to turn a farmyard in a village outside Swindon into houses and a light industrial development has been approved for the second time.

It had been given the thumbs-up by the same Swindon Borough Council planning committee more than 18 months ago - a decision which was then overturned by the High Court after a challenge by Guillaume Molhant-Proost, owner of Hannington Hall.

And while Hannington Parish Council was unable to give its support to the scheme, it became clear that was because it felt hamstrung by planning regulations.

The scheme has been proposed by Lower Burytown Farms, which runs Manor Farm, on the edge of Hannington.

The company’s representative, Aaron Smith of Fowler Architecture in Pewsey, told the committee: “The Barker family, which lives at the farm, has lived in the area for more than 100 years and at the farm since 1952.

“The family’s farming business is now based away from the farmyard and the family wants to find an alternative use for it, including houses and employment units.

“The scheme has been reduced from 10 to eight houses and it will bring considerable public benefit to the village which will outweigh any harm, including support for the local rural economy.”

Objections from neighbours included the fact that the development would be outside the development boundary in Hannington’s Neighbourhood Plan.

Kelli Salone said: “We have just created the Neighbourhood Plan, if this committee approves this scheme it will make it immediately irrelevant and a total waste of time.

“This plan is too much, too big and too soon for the village. One of the best things about Hannington is that it is still very much a rural village community.”

There had been a number of letters and emails in support of the application as well.

Chairman of Hannington Parish Council Scott Talbert told the committee: “The council is unable to support the application because it falls outside of the development boundary of the village. But there are a number of existing houses outside that boundary, and I urge Swindon Borough Council to look at that boundary as a matter of urgency.”

While not supporting the application Mr Talbert said, if it was approved, conditions should be attached to ensure no security lights should be allowed at the houses or industrial units, and cars should not be allowed to park anywhere on Queen’s Road “which is very narrow and used by lots of agricultural traffic especially around harvest.”

Having been told the light industrial use prevented noise or nuisance being caused, councillors voted overwhelmingly to approve the plans.