‘Enough is enough’

Developers should not be able to build houses wherever they want in Melksham

LOCAL MP, Michelle Donelan, is taking on the issue of developers being able to build more houses because Wiltshire Council does not have a five-year land supply. As a result, she says that speculative developments are being allowed to take place in Melksham. Furthermore, she says that although more affordable housing is needed, developers are “exploiting loopholes in the system to build houses wherever they want.” 

The MP’s remarks follow the case of a planned development of 53 houses on land west of Semington Road, Melksham, which will now be built on agricultural land. The plans were strongly opposed by Melksham Without Parish Council and Melksham Town Council last year, with both councils citing concerns around the loss of a rural buffer, poor pedestrian access to the town and over the A350, lack of infrastructure and impact on the Melksham Canal Link. 

The lack of connectivity with the Melksham Neighbourhood Plan was also cited as a reason by the local councils as to why the development should not go ahead. 

The fact that Wiltshire Council does not currently have a five-year land supply, which means there is an insufficient number of ‘deliverable sites’ to provide five years’ worth of housing, also means the authority has less control over where new housing developments can be built. 

Open countryside 

Plans for the site were first submitted in 2019 by developers, Terra Strategic, but they were turned down by Wiltshire Council in 2021 with its own planning officers explaining that the proposed development, in open countryside, was outside the limits of development defined for Melksham in Wiltshire Council’s core strategy.   

The developers launched an appeal and resubmitted plans to increase the number of affordable houses from 30% to 100%. Wiltshire Council approved these plans last year and local councillors speculated that Wiltshire Council’s ‘shortfall’ in affordable housing across the county was behind the decision; and that the U-turn could set a precedent and open the door to more ‘speculative’ applications. 

‘Call in’ request refused

Melksham Without Parish Council asked for the plans to be “called in” which would have stopped the process and allowed the plans to receive further scrutiny. At the meeting of Wiltshire Council’s Strategic Planning Committee on 29th November, cllr Jonathon Seed, on behalf of Melksham Without Parish Council, requested the plans be ‘called in,’ but this was refused. 

At the meeting, chair of Melksham Without Parish Council, cllr John Glover, said, “The only thing that supports this recommendation is the lack of a five-year land supply, something that Wiltshire Council and officials have failed to provide for years.” 

Following the decision, MP Michelle Donelan said, “I am obviously really disappointed that this housing application has been given the green light. Enough is enough. Melksham has had more than its fair share of housing and this new development is not even plan-led. Wiltshire Council’s Local Plan sets out where housing should be built and this development is outside that plan. 

“As your local MP I am arranging a meeting between Michael Gove, who is the cabinet member in charge of housing and Wiltshire Council to sort out the issue of five-year housing land supply which is allowing speculative developments to take place in Melksham.  

“I have always been clear that we need more affordable housing but I do not want to see developers exploiting loopholes in the system to build houses wherever they want. Watch this space for further updates.”