Parish council’s concerns over new houses plan

MELKSHAM Without Parish Council has raised a number of concerns about Wiltshire Council’s proposed plan to build over 2,500 new houses in Melksham.

Lack of employment land to support the increase in population; Wiltshire Council’s ambition to exceed the current housing target for Wiltshire set by the Government; and the impact of piecemeal development on “stretched” facilities in the area, were some of the issues discussed at the parish council’s planning committee meeting last week.

Parish councillors also suggested that some of the 2,585 homes proposed for Melksham should be built in Chippenham instead. 

At the meeting, cllr Alan Baines described Chippenham as a more “sustainable” option for new homes, as it has “better” rail and road links and has “more scope” for employment land to support new developments.

“We should query the perception that just because Melksham has done well in the past, we’re going to do well in the future,” said cllr Baines about challenging Wiltshire Council over the number of new houses proposed for Melksham.

In the new Local Plan, Wiltshire Council has not proposed that any additional land in Melksham be used for employment to support the new houses – which has sparked fears for parish councillors that the town could become “dormitory”.

Chair of the parish council, cllr Richard Wood said, “If we are going to be anything more than a dormitory town – and I hope we are going to move towards a sustainable town – then we have to  have more work for people who can travel from their homes in Melksham to their work in Melksham.

“If we don’t keep abreast of need then we are making a grave mistake.”

However, it was suggested by cllr Baines that the current number of vacant premises at Bowerhill’s industrial estate could be the reason why there is no proposed employment land in the Local Plan.

Disagreeing with cllr Baines, cllr John Glover said that the vacant premises in the industrial park are “small” and that Melksham needs employment on a “larger scale”.

The parish council also debated the 17 greenfield sites around Melksham that have been put forward as potential sites for housing development and whether the 2,585 homes should be “dispersed” across the sites, or if the majority of the homes should be built on one large site. 

In favour of “dispersal’, cllr David Pafford said, “To build one huge development is like creating another small town’ whilst cllr Glover said that he was “not so keen” on piecemeal development as it could “stretch” facilities in Melksham.

Instead, cllr Glover suggested that he was more in favour of a “large-ish” development with supporting infrastructure, such as a secondary school and health services – included as part of the development.

Parish councillors also noted that they felt a large extension to the east of Melksham was possibly “on the cards.”

And of the 17 proposed sites for development, they earmarked two sites as most likely options to support a larger development – ‘Site  1’ covering land to the east of Melksham, which includes  land at Blackmore Farm, land at Snarlton Lane, and Tan House Farm, Redstocks, Seend, Melksham; and ‘Site 17’ covering land to the north of the A3102 near Woodrow Road.

Concern was also raised about Wiltshire Council’s estimated target of up to 45,600 new houses for Wiltshire as a whole – which exceeds the Government’s current minimum housing target for Wiltshire of 40,840.

Cllr Wood explained that there was no evidence to support why Wiltshire Council should aim for the higher figure of 45,600.

And cllr David Pafford added that he thought that the 45,600 target was Wiltshire Council “building in a  margin for error” and a possible change in Government policy.

“The trouble with expecting the higher figure is that this new figure becomes the new norm. And they’ll build up to that and beyond, as they have done up to 2026,” said cllr Pafford referring to Wiltshire Council’s current 2006-2026 plan for Melksham, which has a housing target of 2,240 – a target that has already been exceeded.

How the new housing plans could impact the proposed route of the ‘Melksham Link’ canal and a new A350 bypass for Melksham, were also noted as areas to flag up for concern by the parish council.

The discussions marked the start of the parish council exploring how it should respond to Wiltshire Council’s consultation about its proposed Local Plan for the 2016-2036 period.

The parish council will agree its response to the consultation at its next full council meeting on Monday 1st March.

For more information on the Local Plan and consultation, which is open until March 9th, go to Wiltshire Council’s website:  www.wiltshire.gov.uk/planning-policy-local-plan-review-consultation