North Warwickshire and Nuneaton Planning
The
Branch keeps an eye on planning in the area ...
here
are a few current issues ...
Housing
- Regional Planning Review
In December 2007, the West Midlands Regional Assembly
submitted revisions to the Regional Strategy proposing that
10,800 extra homes should be built across Nuneaton and Bedworth
over over 20 years – a massive increase, potentially
a 21% increase in the size of the built-up area (2).
Even
if half of these extra houses can be accommodated on brownfield
sites – by redevelopment, infill, conversions - around
5,000 houses would need to be sited on what are now green
fields in the Borough. And much of these are Green Belt.
The
Nathaniel Lichfield Report in October 2008, commissioned by
the Government to look at how to impose further housing numbers
that it wants local councils to provide for, does not try
to increase the housing target for Nuneaton & Bedworth
still more.
But the Regional Assembly’s level of proposed housing
is itself too high if the Borough’s towns are to keep
their rural setting. They would overturn the tight control
on expansion that the present Local Plan has as key policy.
The present Local Plan, adopted after much public participation:
--
keeps Bedworth Woodlands green
--
has prevented further spread of housing at Weddington, northwest
of Nuneaton
--
preserves the green gap between the two towns at Griff.
The
extra 10,800 houses – the target for the 20 years to
2026 - would threaten all these green landscapes – each
of which has been defended successfully by local campaigners
in the last ten years (3) (4) (5).
The
Borough Council’s strong and resolved position that
Bedworth Woodlands should be returned to the Green Belt would
be undermined by the demand to provide for so much extra housing.
The
Woodlands meets the tests for inclusion in the Green Belt.
But to ensure that it is given Green Belt status, the Regional
Spatial Strategy needs to provide for this in principle. Then
Nuneaton & Bedworth Borough Council can set a new Green
Belt boundary that puts the Woodlands into the Green Belt
through its Local Development Framework.
The
Examination in Public of the draft Regional Spatial Strategy
was completed in June 2009 and the final report is awaited.
See
our press release dated 11/11/08
See also the CPRE
West Midlands website
Make
your views known to wmrss@wmra.gov.uk
or Join Us
Housing
- Regional Planning Review - October 2007
The West Midlands Regional Assembly sent its proposals for
housing targets for the period 2006 to 2026.
The figure for North Warwickshire is 3,000. It will be impossible
to achieve the targets without building on greenfield sites
or even in the green belt.
The Government indicated that the figures proposed for the
West Midlands were too low and have appointed consultants,
Nathaniel Lichfield, to carry out a study on housing needs.
Make your views known to wmrss@wmra.gov.uk
or Join Us
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