Plans to build up to 24 new homes near Glastonbury Tor have been approved following a successful planning appeal, reversing a previous refusal by Somerset Council.
Elan Homes is already developing the Avalon estate, comprising 60 homes on Old Wells Road in Glastonbury, adjacent to West Mendip Community Hospital. The new proposal, submitted in June 2024 by T. & A. Land Associates Ltd. from Marston Trading Estate, Frome, seeks outline permission to construct 24 additional houses at the southeastern edge of the Avalon development, specifically at the bottom of Cullen Farm Road.
Somerset Council’s planning committee for the former Mendip area initially rejected the application in December 2024, citing concerns over protecting the remaining landscape around the iconic Glastonbury Tor. However, the Planning Inspectorate overturned this decision, concluding that the new homes would not significantly detract from the Tor’s natural beauty, spiritual significance, or historical value.
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Although the site is outside of the Mendip Local Plan Part II, which was approved in 2021 and later revised following a judicial review, the land had been identified during Glastonbury Town Council’s early Neighbourhood Plan ‘call for sites’. Initially, the developer proposed 34 homes, but reduced this figure to 24 after consultations with the council’s planning department.
Of these 24 homes, seven will be affordable, slightly below the 30 percent target set for developments of ten homes or more in the former Mendip area. Planning Inspector J.J. Evans visited the site in September 2024 and issued his ruling on November 26. He acknowledged the Tor’s “strikingly dominant presence” and its long history as a pilgrimage site steeped in legend and cultural importance.
Despite the site’s location beyond the town’s development boundary, Evans deemed it close enough to local amenities to represent sustainable housing growth. He recognized that the development would convert open pasture land and alter the area’s character but emphasized that the new homes would blend logically with the existing estate, which already extends into the countryside. Additional landscaping measures could further screen the development from nearby streets, especially during spring and summer when trees are in leaf.
The inspector also noted that from the summit of the Tor, views of the site would be limited due to the hill’s topography, with only the roofs of a few northern estate homes visible. In compliance with environmental requirements for the River Brue catchment area, the developer plans to upgrade septic tanks to package treatment plants to prevent increased phosphate levels on the Somerset Levels and Moors.
Concerns raised by residents about pressure on local services were addressed by plans for financial contributions toward schools and GP surgeries, as well as proximity to a nearby play area. Evans further concluded that the addition of 24 households would not cause unacceptable traffic impacts on the speed-restricted Old Wells Road.
With the council acknowledging a critical shortfall—only 2.2 years—of housing land supply against the five-year requirement, this development is seen as a vital contribution to the area’s housing needs, especially with the inclusion of affordable homes.
The developer plans to submit detailed designs and layouts through a reserved matters application anticipated by summer 2026.