In an effort to address the housing crisis in Purbeck, particularly for young people, there’s a community-led proposal to build up to 25 affordable rental homes on a hay meadow in Harman’s Cross, within the parish of Corfe Castle in Dorset.
The proposed development at Tabbit’s Hill Lane is being led by Corfe Castle Community Land Trust (CLT), which hopes to deliver genuinely affordable homes on a social rent basis for people with strong local connections to the parish of Corfe Castle and the neighbouring parish of Worth Matravers.
Up to 25 new homes could be built on this field to the west of Tabbit’s Hill Lane
30 sites have been ruled out
The four acre site, located within the Corfe Castle boundary but part of Harman’s Cross village, would see development limited to around two and a half acres, with the remainder retained for biodiversity and landscape protection.
Corfe Castle CLT has been looking for a suitable site for the past nine years, but up to 30 locations have been ruled out because of land issues like flooding, while two attempts to acquire building land in West Street have fallen through.
But agricultural land owned by Corfe Castle Charity off Tabbits Hill Lane could be the answer.
Under the proposal, homes would remain affordable rental properties in perpetuity, owned by Corfe Castle CLT and leased to housing provider Aster Group, on a 129 year lease, with rental costs – to local people only – expected to be set at around 60 to 65 per cent of market rates. Aster Group would not be able to sell these properties.
The proposed development site off Tabbit’s Hill Lane in Harman’s Cross is outlined in red
Sue Loseby, secretary of Corfe Castle CLT, is leading community engagement in Corfe Castle and Harmans Cross
“There is a controversy”
At a crowded meeting at Harman’s Cross village hall on Monday 27th April 2026, there was a lot of support from residents who accepted there was an urgent need for affordable homes for Purbeck families in real need.
However there was opposition from some living in Harman’s Cross near to the proposed development, who were concerned about the loss of surrounding countryside, their view across fields, and the disruption that building would bring.
Sue Loseby, secretary of Corfe Castle Community Land Trust, said:
“We are incredibly sensitive about the fact that we wanted to build affordable housing – initially just for Corfe Castle residents – in a neighbouring village.
“As Harman’s Cross residents said to us, quite appropriately, they will take the brunt of the pain of planning and development for the benefit of Corfe Castle. It’s a fair point, there is a controversy.
“Harman’s Cross and Corfe Castle are two very different villages and it is fair to say that we have been met with resistance from a number of people, though we actually got a lot of support as well, from people who thought this was the right thing to do.
“We also found there were people who said to us openly that they were neutral and didn’t know which way they were going to go – but the more they were kept involved, the more likely they were to come on board.”
At least one and a half acres of the four acre site will be left for biodiversity
“We truly hope it will be part of the village”
Sue Loseby added:
“We are proposing that the homes should be available to people with local connections to both Corfe Castle parish and Worth Matravers parish, which includes Harman’s Cross.
“I suspect on balance there will be more people from Corfe Castle who will get the houses because the makeup of the villages are so different, so Harman’s Cross definitely needs to get something out of it.
“I believe that building affordable housing is the right thing to do in areas like this, or anywhere that needs it – so many young people and families have had to move right out of Purbeck because there is nowhere here that they can afford.
“Yes, there will be pain for Harman’s Cross – you only need one house to be built down your street to see how much mud and noise is created, so there is no doubt that building up to 25 homes is a substantial disruption in that sense.
“But we truly hope that once it is there and established it will be a community asset and part of the fabric of the village.”
Tabbits Hill Lane could be used by construction traffic if the plans go ahead
Plans could be submitted by the end of 2026
No planning permission has yet been applied for, although land surveys are currently being carried out to establish the geology and ecology of the field, currently being used for growing hay.
Under a tentative timescale, plans could be submitted to Dorset Council by the end of 2026 with building starting in 2028 if permission was given.
There are no plans yet for what the buildings could look like, although it is believed they would be a mixture of one, two and three bedroom homes and the CLT says the greatest care will be given to the build quality and appearance.
At the public meeting – part of the Worth Matravers annual parish meeting – Harmans Cross villagers suggested benefits that they could gain from a development, should planning permission eventually be granted.
These could include street lighting for the Tabbit’s Hill Lane area, pathways, a zebra crossing and a chance to lobby for a better bus service for the village.
Harman’s Cross is not as well served by buses as Corfe Castle – but that might change if a new development is built
Families will rely on public transport
Sue Loseby said:
“Harman’s Cross is really badly served by buses at the moment, but if we are to bring another 25 homes to the village, it provides a really strong lobbying opportunity for improved services.
“Most of those families won’t be getting ubers and taxis, they will be relying on public transport, so this provides a really good opportunity to push for Harman’s Cross to get an improved service.
“We can’t guarantee it will happen, but the increase in homes would give residents and councillors some good ammunition to move their cause forward, and we would be 100 per cent behind that.”
Corfe Castle CLT says it will continue to hold meetings with residents in both parishes, about the plans, and the steps that locals should take to find out if they could qualify to rent one of the homes.
Some 30 sites were investigated for affordable housing in Corfe Castle itself, but all fell through
Further information
- More about Community Land Trusts on the national website
