Rejected West Lothian plans for over 160 new homes challenged by developer

A house builder has challenged West Lothian’s rejection of plans to build new homes in the heart of Livingston.

Persimmon Homes had proposals to build 168 homes on the former Ethicon factory site thrown out in June.

In appeal papers lodged with Scottish Ministers lawyers argue that there have been no takers for the brownfield site since it was cleared in 2019.

West Lothian Council’s planners argued for refusal, and councillors on the Development Management Committee agreed that the site was designated for employment use and should not be converted to housing.

Persimmon Homes had applied for planning permission to redevelop the site of the former Ethicon factory on Simpson Parkway in the heart of Livingston.

Senior planning officer, Gillian Cyphus, said in the report to the Development Management Committee (DMC): “The proposals relate to the redevelopment of a brownfield site within the Kirkton Campus employment area of Livingston for the construction of 122 houses, 46 flats and five small commercial units which provide the facility for local shops, and a unit set aside for community use.”

Mrs Cyphus said that the new Local Development  Plan, expected to be adopted in 2028 could include a policy to convert employment land to housing land. Until a new LDP is decided, the proposal contravenes the existing regulations.

The report to the committee in June added: “Until there is a change in allocation in LDP2, which has not yet been published, then the application is premature and the site cannot be considered in the right location.”

The 20-acre site comprises remnants of the former Ethicon, Johnson & Johnson medical-supplies manufacturing building, which occupied the western half of the land until 2019, when it was demolished. The foundations and car park remain, with the eastern third of the Appeal Site designated as green open space. 

In the last five years, Persimmon Homes East has built and sold 446 homes in West Lothian, 81 of which were transferred to housing association partners. Around £5.5m has paid towards the delivery of local infrastructure through planning obligations. 

At the initial application, agents for the house-builder told councillors that the plan would contribute to affordable housing during the current housing emergency, with 25% of the property allocated to Registered Social Landlords.

Appeal papers lodged with the Division of Planning and Environmental Appeals (DPEA) said there was no demand for the site to be developed  for employment uses, adding: “It is submitted that there is no shortage in the overall supply of employment land and it has been evidenced by seven years of marketing that there is no reasonable or realistic demand to use the site.”

A Reporter will be appointed to make a final decision on the appeal.