A PLANNING application to build 30 new homes in Semington, in open countryside, has been submitted by developers Pegasus/Greystoke. Semington Parish Council says it will be opposing the plans and has urged local residents to make their views known to Wiltshire Council.
The plans are to build 20 market and 10 affordable homes on land south of Pound Lane, on the western edge of the village, where planning permission for 26 houses already exists.
Semington Parish Council has stated its reasons for opposing the development saying, “The parish council will be opposing the application for the following reasons; The land lies outside the settlement boundary; building here is against Wiltshire Council core policies; This development would extend the village into the open countryside which is also against Wiltshire Council core policies; Semington does not need any more market houses or affordable ones at this time, as evidenced by the 2022 Housing Needs Survey.
“Currently, planning permission already exists for 51 new properties (19 affordable / 32 market) in the village. The additional development proposed should be taking place in market towns where there are facilities; The parish council has not been consulted by the developer prior to the application, thereby denying the community any opportunity for comment.
“The landowner/developer was invited to put forward this site for development consideration as part of our neighbourhood planning “call for sites” process, but chose not to do so; Bats and owls feed along the hedgerows that border this quiet piece of land, but they will not be doing this if the building takes place; The development of this land will further compromise the setting of the culturally significant St George’s Court; Pound Lane cannot safely take any more traffic because of existing congestion.
“For all these reasons, this application cannot reasonably be seen as “sustainable development” and therefore should be refused.”
