Government to decide Melksham homes plan in ‘alarming’ move

By Local Democracy Reporter Peter Davison with additional reporting by Melksham News

The government is to decide whether 300 new houses can be built on land at Snarlton Farm, in a move described as “alarming”.

Last month, 20 people spoke against the proposed development in east of Melksham at an appeal hearing.

The application for the new homes was rejected by Wiltshire Council in August last year, just one day after the Joint Melksham Neighbourhood Plan 2 was formally adopted following a referendum. The site is not included in the plan’s housing allocations, which exceed the required number of homes for the area; or in the Wiltshire Council draft Local Plan.

Developers Catesby Estates announced its decision to appeal and Wiltshire Council agreed to fight its corner. A four-day planning enquiry took place last month.

Recently, the Planning Inspectorate told the authority that the decision would be made not by a local Planning Inspector, but by the Secretary of State for Housing, who is now Steve Reed following Angela Rayner’s departure from the role.

The matter was raised at a meeting of the council’s Liberal Democrat-led cabinet by Conservative ward councillor Nick Holder.

“The reason given is that this is a residential development of over 150 units and/or a site of over five hectares,” Cllr Holder told cabinet members.

“What I would like to know is if this is specific just to this appeal, or is this likely to create a precedent, not just in Wiltshire but elsewhere, that developments of this size will no longer be decided by local authorities, but are going to be determined by the Secretary of State in the government’s race to build houses?”

He added, “The concern I have locally is that it will potentially invalidate the purpose of a local neighbourhood plan and potentially invalidate our strategic planning committees.”

Cabinet member for housing Adrian Foster said, “We have had several consultations from the government over the last six months about new planning policy and approach, none of which is encouraging from a local democracy point of view.

“They want it to be officers’ decisions for developments below 50 houses and not to go to committees.

“And they want to take away quite a lot of the environmental improvements that we’ve been put in. They are rolling back all the improvements to the planning system that we’ve had.

“They want to reduce the objections to planning so that they can meet their 1.5 million houses target by the end of their term of office, and that seems to be the main drive with everything else being thrown under the bus.”

And council leader Ian Thorn said, “I’m absolutely appalled by what you’ve described. I think it sweeps away a huge part of our local democracy.

“It’s alarming. It’s absolutely unacceptable. It is a derogation of democratic duty. And I would want all of us in this room to be prepared to fight this every step of the way.”

Starting on 3rd February, an appeal hearing for 70 houses on land off Woodrow Road in Melksham Forest took place. This application was also refused last year on the grounds that the plans do not comply with Wiltshire Council’s Local Plan or the Joint Melksham Neighbourhood Plan. A number of councillors and community representatives spoke at the hearing against the plans.