Have your say on the future of our Parishes

South Glos Council is asking for your views on the future of our Parishes.

Earlier this year South Glos adopted its Core Strategy, a planning blueprint for the area until 2027. Now the council is preparing another document, the Policies, Sites and Places DPD. This adds more detail to the policies in the Core Strategy and also includes a section for each Parish setting out local needs and aspirations.

For example:

• Westerleigh Parish  has said it wants no more development in Coalpit Heath, but it does want a small amount in Westerleigh village, to help its vitality and support facilities like the shop.
• All the parishes have identified pieces of land they would like designated a "Local Green Space". Both Westerleigh and Frampton Cotterell Parishes have put forward Woodlands Farm for this protection, as well as a number of other sites.
• Westerleigh, Frampton Cotterell and Winterbourne Parishes have proposed having separate settlement boundaries for Coalpit Heath, Frampton Cotterell and Winterbourne.

You can find the draft plan and information on it at www.southglos.gov.uk/policiessitesandplaces - at the moment, the draft plan still needs updating with the amendments listed in a separate document, so you need to look at both. The amendments will be incorporated into the Draft Plan and that will be published again on 26th June. Take a look at the section for your Parish - do you agree with what's proposed?

To designate land as a "Local Green Space" the Government requires it to be considered very special to local people – so we need evidence to show this.

One of the sections covers Gypsy and Traveller policies. Officers have proposed that the need for pitches in the next 5 years is delivered through intensification of existing sites (putting more homes on them without extending the boundaries) including Henfield Paddock, Elm Farm and Hill View in Westerleigh Parish. They have also suggested that all the safeguarded sites that currently have personal or temporary permissions are designated permanent gypsy sites, which involves taking them out of the Green Belt.

There is also a proposed extension to Wickwar Quarry and a section on the Oldbury Nuclear Site, which could include infrastructure changes at Junction 14 of M5 with a proposed reconfiguration of the junction and park and share facility.

There will be drop-in sessions where you can find out more on all these issues and have your say:

• Iron Acton - 5pm-7pm, Thursday 3rd July in the Village Hall
• Westerleigh Parish - 5pm-7pm, Monday 7th July in Westerleigh Village Hall
• Frampton Cotterell - 5.30pm-7pm, Wednesday 9th July in the Brockeridge Centre
• Charfield - 3pm-8pm, 16th July at Charfield Memorial Hall
• Cromhall - 4pm-8pm, 17th July at Cromhall Village Hall

Protecting our rural environment is a priority for your Focus Team. To help us to fight on your behalf please:

• let us know your views, so we can speak for the community
• make your own comments directly to South Glos, to add weight to what we are saying.

 You can find our contacts here.