CONTROVERSIAL plans to build four new houses near Jubilee Copse in Bramhope are set to be rejected according to the area’s MP.

Greg Mulholland says Leeds City Council planning officers are to recommend the planning application for land next to Jubilee Copse should be turned down.

A spokesman for developer Bramhope Assets said they were still waiting for a decision on the application.

Bramhope Assets had previously applied for planning permission for four homes on the privately-owned land adjacent to Jubilee Copse near the junction with Wynmore Avenue in 2014. Leeds City Council refused the application on the grounds that the land formed part of a key green area within Bramhope.

New proposals are now being considered by Leeds City Council and a decision is expected by Friday, March 6.

The scheme is being opposed by Bramhope Parish Council as well as more than 250 residents and Mr Mulholland.

Now the MP says the application is to be refused again on the grounds of the loss of a defined Key Green Area within Bramhope Conservation Area, the loss of an area of Green Space protected by the Bramhope Village Design Statement, together with the impact the development will have on the quality and amenity afforded by the definitive public right of way.

The developers had also been accused by local people of vandalising the conservation area by fencing off the area, which also blocked a footpath running through the land which Leeds City Council had designated as a public right of way.

Mr Mulholland said: “It is great news that the council has recommended that this application be rejected. This was not a suitable development for the site, and would have led to the loss of valuable green space used regularly by local residents.

“I hope that the council can now ensure that the fencing is removed and the public right of way is restored.”

A spokesman for Bramhope Assets said no decision has been issued as yet. He said they were still waiting for a decision and had sought to engage with the council and local residents.

“We have committed to removing the damaged fencing on the private land, action we are taking as a result of feedback from the public consultation we conducted in January,” he added.