Policies, Sites and Places Plan - what next?

Over the last year we've been reporting regularly on the progress of South Glos Council's Policies, Sites and Places Plan. The next big step will be taken on Wednesday 18th March when South Gloucestershire Council as a whole will be voting on what should be submitted to the Planning Inspector. The meeting starts at 7pm in Kingswood Civic Centre and you are welcome to attend.

Before that, on 13th March, the Policy and Resources committee will be making its recommendation to the council. The agenda for that meeting has now been published and it includes a link to the plan.

There were a number of issues of concern to local residents in last year's consultation. Your Focus Team has been putting the views of local residents to officers as the plan progresses.

In the Ladden Frome area:

• Rangeworthy Parish Council has decided there should be 20 new homes in the village to meet local need.
• Westerleigh Parish Council decided not to go ahead with up to 20 new homes at Westerleigh village, so the plan doesn't include that proposal.
• Iron Acton Parish Council has identified that the village needs a small number of extra houses. Because these would be in the Green Belt it will be a “Rural Exception Site” and not included in this Plan.
• It's proposed that Coalpit Heath, Frampton Cotterell and Winterbourne should have separate development boundaries to reflect the fact they are separate communities. The boundary for Frampton Cotterell will be extended to take in The Meads development.
• The plan still proposes intensifying some gypsy and traveller sites (that is, adding extra pitches without extending the boundaries) and also designating all temporary sites or those restricted to particular families as permanent sites, taking the land out of the Green Belt.
• The pieces of land officers are recommending to be designated as Local Green Space hasn't been published yet. Many local people have been hoping Woodlands Farm would be one of them, but it could be affected by a recent Inspector ruling elsewhere in the country that a site of 19 hectares was too large an area to be designated.

If the council agrees that the plan should be submitted, there will then be a 6 week consultation. Any responses you make will be passed to the Planning Inspector who will decide if the plan is sound. This gives you another opportunity to make your views known if you are not happy with what South Gloucestershire Council has decided. We will let you know how you can comment at the time.