Tuesday, 21 March 2023
Public hearing dates have been announced for Spelthorne Borough Council’s Local Plan examination.
The independent Inspector
appointed to examine the Spelthorne Local Plan, Jameson Bridgwater PGDipTP MRTPI, has been reading through the Plan, all the evidence
that supports it and the representations received from members of the public
and other stakeholders.
With the examination well underway, Mr
Bridgwater is now able to prepare for the public hearing sessions that also
form an integral part of examining the Local Plan.
The sessions will be held in
person in the Council Chamber, with arrangements in place for virtual
participation where required. Those who made representations will have the
opportunity to appear at the hearings and speak directly to the Inspector. The
Programme Officer will be in touch with those parties in due course. The
Inspector will produce a schedule for which topics will be discussed at each
hearing sessions, which will be published on the examination website.
The dates for the hearings are
as follows, starting at 10am each day:
•
Tuesday the 23rd of May and run until Thursday the 25th of May 2023
•
Tuesday the 13th of June and run until Thursday the 15th of June 2023
•
Tuesday the 20th of June and run until Thursday the 22nd of June 2023
Spelthorne
Borough Council says this is “yet another
positive step forward to get the Local Plan adopted without further delay as it
has already taken over six years to reach this stage. Having an out-of-date
Local Plan and without a five-year supply of housing has counted against
Spelthorne at appeal on developments the Council has refused.
There are also other
significant benefits the Local Plan will deliver, including family homes with
gardens, affordable housing, local infrastructure, sports and recreation
enhancements, a new sixth form college and a new community centre for Ashford.
Importantly, it will greatly strengthen our defence against predatory
development on crucial Green Belt sites as well as offering much greater
protection for many of our smaller urban open spaces. Once the Plan is in
place, the Strategic Planning team can then focus on other essential projects
such as design codes, further transport work in Staines and enhancing our local
green areas and infrastructure.”
Councillor Ian Beardsmore,
Chair of Environment & Sustainability Committee, said “We welcome the news
that the Inspector is keen to progress with the public hearings. The
clear majority of residents support the benefits of what the plan will deliver
and achieve and want it to progress without further delay. Our Local Plan will
bring many benefits and protections to Spelthorne and we look forward to having
it adopted so we can move to the ‘delivery phase’ of the Plan.”
posted by Radio Jackie News Team @ 12:19 pm
