Pickering House Development

Pickering House is the three storey block of 18 former Police flats on the south side of Windmill Road, located between The Plough Junction and Windmill Court. The owner has applied to the Council to add 6 two bedroom flats on the top of the existing building.  This will involve raising the height of the roof and replacing the existing gently sloping roof with an additional residential floor that will extend to the edge of the building. EFRA is concerned about a number of aspects of this application including:

• Overlooking of surrounding houses and gardens from the windows of the additional fourth floor,
• Increase in the bulk and overbearing appearance of Pickering House that will result from the construction of an additional floor around the edge of the building and raising of the roof height,
• Pressure caused by additional residents on local facilities including on-street parking and school places,
• Cramped nature of the proposed flats, which means that it will not be possible for residents to stand upright in much of the living space.

This is the second application that has been submitted for the construction of an additional floor on the top of this building. The first was withdrawn by the owner following submissions by EFRA and local residents. We are waiting for the Council to announce their decision on the latest application. The EFRA submission to the Council’s planners is attached as a PDF document.