A bid to convert a redundant Gloucestershire church into twelve homes is a step closer to approval despite fears lack of parking are a “recipe for gridlock”.

Forest of Dean District planners have voted to grant officers the authority to approve plans to go ahead with the works at the Church of St John in Coleford.

Czero Developments’ proposal, which includes a mixture of one to four bedroom maisonettes and apartments, was considered by the development management committee on April 8.

Worship ceased at the church in 2012 and the building was formally closed in July 2016 and the building has been on the English Heritage ‘at-risk’ register since the 1980s.

The Diocese of Gloucester have been actively marketing the building for other uses over the last five years and the latest proposal includes the installation of new window and door openings and steel frame and concrete floors inside to support new residential spaces.

The developers say key features such as the timber roof structure, stained glass windows, choir stone surround, and war memorials would be preserved.

However, nearby residents are extremely concerned over the impact the proposals will have on parking in the area.

Vicky Payne, a town resident, spoke at the meeting on behalf of residents of nearby streets to register their “strong and deeply felt” objection to the plans.

She said their central concern was the woefully inadequate parking proposed for the development which she described as “alarming” and a “recipe for gridlock”.

“The application proposes a mere 17 spaces for 12 dwellings which is approximately 1.4 per household,” she said.

“This figure fails to account for the likely vehicle ownership of two new households which removes 11 spaces, ten of which are being used as we speak.

“The majority of those people work from home.” She said it also affects the kerbside of nearby property and there are privacy concerns due to overlooking on nearby homes.

“Boxbush Road already experiences significant and disruptive parking congestion,” she added. “Residents routinely struggle to find parking, are blocked in by employees of local businesses and have damaged vehicles.”

She called on councillors to reject the plans and urged them to prioritise the safety and wellbeing of their existing constituents.

Coleford Town Councillor Stuart Cox said they support the conversion of the church as the “only real viable option” to preserve the grade II listed building.

Simon Linford, the applicant, told councillors he is a developer who tries to save church buildings. He said the proposals are backed by precedent and more than 150 churches have been converted to residential use since 1966.

He said the churches are too big and too expensive to maintain which often rules out other alternatives such as their use as community building.

“We’ve addressed every whim,” he said.

“Even the reduction in usable floor space by a third.”

He said the building has suffered three more years of deterioration since it almost went to committee in 2022 and it is no longer insurable.

Councillor John Francis (I, Longhope and Huntley) proposed delegating the decision to officers.

He said the benefits of the scheme outweighed the negative aspects.

“It will bring 12 units to Coleford,” he said. “It will actually retain a historical building and protect the heritage assets within the building.

“It will also protect the visual amenity of the building in the skyline of Coleford itself.”

This was seconded by Cllr Beth Llewellyn (G, Bream).

Chairman Dave Wheeler (G, Newland and Sling) said the council should insist the developers pay for an independent valuation of the property.

This will establish whether or not they could afford to provide affordable housing on the site.

Cllr Francis agreed and the committee voted to approve the proposals by seven in favour with two abstentions.

Councillors also voted to delegate the decision to grant listed building consent to officers.