Dance school in Gomersal set to become a block of one-bedroom apartments despite 250 objections from residents

The Dancing House, located on Moor Lane, is a three-storey stone building, described as being in an ageing condition and comes with garden space and a car park.

The application sought permission to convert and extend the existing building, making room for 10, one-bedroomed apartments. Each property would come with a parking space, plus two to be shared by visitors.

Kirklees Council officers recommended that the application be approved at Thursday’s (June 22) meeting of the planning sub-committee for the Heavy Woollen area.

Officers explained the area’s need for one-bedroom housing and that although officers were “sympathetic” to the community’s loss of a dance school, it was not protected under policy as a “community asset”.

However, 250 residents disagreed with this. One resident attended the meeting and described the dance school as a “vital community asset” that had been serving the community for more than 100 years.

He told the meeting that the school provides classes to people of all age groups, helping them to build skills, improve their fitness and combat social isolation. He also explained that the school discourages anti-social behaviour in the area.

He added: “The dancing house is a valuable local facility. It provides a local service with undoubted social, physical and mental benefits, and its loss will be irreplaceable for many local people.”

Coun Elizabeth Smaje (Con, Birstall and Birkenshaw) voiced her concerns. She said: “We do not want problems all day every day because there are issues with access.”

Coun Smaje explained that she could not see how there was room at the site’s entrance for two cars, pedestrians and bin storage.

However, later in the meeting, officers assured the committee that the access road would be widened, there would be sufficient space and that a strategy for bins was to be secured.

The applicant and landlord, Charlotte McCue, who has lived on Moor Lane for the past 16 years, also attended the meeting, describing the dire state of the housing market and the place for privately rented properties. She told how tenants are “desperate to downsize”.

Ms McCue explained that the lease for the dance school came to an end in 2021. With an agreement unable to be reached, she proceeded to submit an application for redevelopment, with the dance school now searching for alternative premises.

She concluded: “I firmly believe that we must take action now to boost the supply of rental property. The only way to improve supply is an increase in new investment from corporate and private landlords.”

Coun Andrew Pinnock (Lib Dem, Cleckheaton) said: “In many ways, I’m very sorry this application is going to close down a valued facility.”

However, he continued: “We have been given some pretty good reasons for giving permission to this application, not the least of which being that it adds to the supply of single-bedroomed properties for people, which is a particular requirement of the area in which it sits.”

Coun John Lawson (Lib Dem, Cleckheaton) asked that an additional condition be added to see the exterior of the building constructed from natural stone.

When it came to the vote, the majority of the panel voted in support of the application, with planning permission ultimately being granted.