Villagers in Holt have reconfirmed their objections to the design plans for 90 new houses at Great Parks after the developer, Bewley Homes, criticised Wiltshire Council for rejecting the proposals.
Residents, joined by MP Brian Mathew and members of Holt Parish Council, gathered at the site to voice their concerns over the designs. Speaking at the gathering, Holt Parish Council told Melksham News, “Residents in Holt need a better scheme. We hope Bewley comes forward with revised and improved plans. We want quality over quantity.”
Wiltshire Council’s Western Area Planning Committee refused the reserved matters application for Bewley Homes’ proposed designs earlier this month, citing failure to meet high-quality design standards and non-compliance with local planning policies.
However, Bewley Homes has pushed back against the decision, announcing plans to challenge the refusal. The company claims that the rejection fails to address the region’s growing housing crisis and has vowed to appeal through the Secretary of State.
Managing director of Bewley Homes, Andrew Brooks, said, “According to the council’s housing register, over 4,000 people are waiting for a home. The council is failing to address the region’s growing housing crisis.”
The proposed development includes a mix of two, three, four and five-bedroom houses, with 40% designated as affordable housing. Andrew Brooks added, “With Wiltshire residents suffering and a clear demand for housing, Bewley Homes will have no choice but to challenge the council’s decision.
“We will be pursuing an appeal through the Secretary of State. This will be an expensive and time-consuming process for both sides, draining both taxpayer money and valuable planning resources, resources that could have been better spent delivering the homes people desperately need.”
Wiltshire councillor for Holt, Cllr Trevor Carbin, criticised the scheme at the planning meeting on 5th February, calling it ‘ugly’ and saying Holt deserves a development it can be proud of.
“It wouldn’t be too difficult to create a well-designed estate, fitting in with the neighbourhood and creating a good place to live for future residents. That could then be got through the planning process quite quickly,” he said.
“The housing crisis in Wiltshire is due to a lack of ‘affordable’ homes, of which the greatest need is for social rented housing. This development will help, but most of the homes on the site are large dwellings for sale. That’s fine and to be expected, but there’s no crisis in that area of the housing market.
“Holt has shown that it can welcome well-designed housing for local people – take a look at the new Star Ground development, created by Stonewater with the co-operation of the Parish Council – to see what can be done.”
Cllr Nick Botterill, Wiltshire Council’s cabinet member for Strategic Planning, said, “The Western Area Planning Committee decided to refuse the application for Land off Melksham Road, Great Parks, Holt. The reasons for refusal were that the proposal does not achieve high-quality design and does not meet the objectives of Core Policy 57 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy, the National Planning Policy Framework Section 12, with particular reference to paragraph 131 of the Wiltshire Design Guide and the Holt Neighbourhood Plan 2016-2026.”
Pictured: Residents and Holt parish councillors with Brian Mathew MP at the proposed development site
