A GROUP of Chepstow residents have claimed their concerns about a new house in the town have been "ignored" by Monmouthshire County Council's (MCC) planning department.

The group claim that for six years, MCC has repeatedly refused to listen and properly consider their concerns regarding the impact of a new house, which they have said is overbearing.

The property in question is located in the grounds of High Trees House - also known as Belle Vue.

Originally granted planning permission in 2015 and again in 2020, the building - according to the residents - now sits partially built and, the group has said, is "towering over existing residents’ properties".

The group say concerns were raised repeatedly about the overlooking issue.

They say that the modified plans, approved in 2020, would have made the overlooking problem "even worse".

However, they say their concerns were ignored.

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A spokesperson for the local residents, who did not wish to be named, said: “We pointed out these issues again and again, but MCC have consistently ignored us and refused to engage in finding acceptable solutions.

"We’d like to see an independent investigation scrutinise the conduct of the planning department and committee.

"Architects and planning officers seem to be able to say one thing during a planning meeting and the reality be something different.”

A MCC spokesperson said: “Planning permission was granted for this dwelling in February 2015, and an amended scheme approved in March 2020.

"On both occasions, the planning committee gave full and careful consideration to the objections raised by the local community, having visited the site and heard the concerns being raised. Construction of the dwelling has been closely monitored by officers, and at this time the construction is in accordance with the approved plans.

“Two local residents have lodged formal complaints on two occasions, both of which were independently investigated in accordance with the council’s complaints policy and neither complaint was upheld. 

“We regret that a small number of local residents remain aggrieved by the decisions made, but the investigations have found that those decisions were properly made and all relevant planning matters were taken into consideration by the committee before reaching its decisions.

"The complainants have been advised that their recourse if they remain aggrieved is to complain to the Public Services Ombudsman.”