THE Winnington Urban Village project, which has faced a lengthy legal battle over its section 106 agreement, netted Cheshire West £14 million in developer contributions — the council's largest in the 2010s.

That’s according to data from an LDRS freedom of information request, which also revealed that CWAC has raked in more than £28 million through the planning agreements since 2010.

Last month, the Court of Appeal ruled in CWAC’s favour after developers attempted to not include ground rents with their profits in the S106 calculations — which would have seen the amount owed to the council fall significantly.

Weaver Vale MP Mike Amesbury welcomed the verdict: “Section 106 agreements are a vital part of 'the deal' that a developer makes with any council.

"If they're permitted to build and make money from a housing project, they must provide the cash needed to also provide the infrastructure that goes with it.”

Data also showed which projects contributed the most to the council.

Winnington Urban Village’s £14 million was comfortably the largest amount, but was also followed by £4.5 million for Chester’s Saighton Camp, and £7.1 million for the Ledsham Garden Village.

Those figures were alongside £4.2 million for the now-abandoned Wincham Urban Village, which envisaged 950 homes being constructed back in 2015.

All in all, CWAC currently has £13 million in unspent section 106 agreements, but this figure is not ‘static’, according to Cllr Carol Gahan, CWAC cabinet member for legal and finance.

She added: “Section 106 agreements are a critical form of funding for the Council to improve infrastructure essential to the local area. The financial contributions received through Section 106 agreements ensure the impacts of development are effectively mitigated by providing funds for school places, highways and sustainable transport improvements, open spaces, health facilities and affordable housing.

“Section 106 forms an essential part of the funding for the Council’s Capital Programme. Over the past three years the Council has received £12.6m in Section 106 contributions and has utilised almost £10m on local infrastructure projects. Section 106 agreements are in place to mitigate the impacts of specific developments. The money must always be used in a way that meets the specific legal obligations within the agreement, which may be for a specific scheme or location. 

“The Council has an obligation to ensure it utilises Section 106 balances in an effective way that achieves the intended outcomes. It is therefore appropriate that time is taken to ensure that all expenditure funded in this way is appropriately planned and therefore there can often be a time lag between when contributions are received and expenditure is incurred.”