WORK on designer Kevin McCloud’s five luxury homes overlooking Oxford could start in the autumn after plans were finally approved.

The presenter of TV show Grand Designs and his housing company HAB Housing have amended their plans for Cumnor Hill after they were heavily criticised by Cumnor Parish Council.

The council’s initial objection to the luxury ecohomes said the terrace garden layout was more suited to the Mediterranean and also raised concerns over the impact on neighbouring properties.

A U-turn followed after the developers met parish councillors and made changes to the design which was approved by Vale of White Horse District Council on Wednesday.

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HAB’s communications director Simon McWhirter said: “This is fantastic news.

“Cumnor Hill is a beautiful setting minutes from Oxford city centre and with the Cotswolds on its doorstep.”

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Kevin McCloud.

Vale of White Horse’s planning committee followed an officer’s recommendation to approve the plans.

Planning officer Holly Bates concluded that plans were in keeping with the character of Cumnor Hill and that it would not “harm the visual amenity and character of the area or the amenities of neighbouring properties.”

Each home can be adapted to buyers’ preferences with different layouts and differing numbers of bedrooms.

The houses will have winter gardens and according to HAB Housing, the landscape design will feature a sustainable urban drainage system which will store and re-use surface water.

It was these winter gardens that bore the brunt of the council’s initial criticism.

Their objection read: “Such an arrangement of terraces/winter gardens might be ideal in an isolated villa in the Mediterranean, for example, but if allowed in suburban Oxford would be a recipe for neighbour disputes.”

Parish council chairman Brian Stops said: “We felt that they listened to us and certain changes were made, particularly to the terrace gardens.”

In 2012 an application for 21 homes on the site was rejected and parish council chairman Brian Stops felt this was the most suitable solution for the site.

He said: “Cumnor Hill is very difficult and takes up a lot of our time – there are questions over drainage and density. It’s certainly better than other applications for the same site.”