Bid for 700 homes in Chippenham put on hold

Plans for Rawlings Green had been granted outline planning permission on September 14, but the application was brought back before Wiltshire Council’s Strategic Planning Committee on Wednesday at County Hall in Trowbridge due to a number of changes.

This included alterations that Wiltshire Council has made to its housing land supply – stating how many homes need to be built in the next five years – and modifications to the Chippenham Site Allocation Plan (CSAP).

A public consultation ended on Monday for people to have their say on changes to the CSAP and Rawlings Green, which included a reduction in homes from 700

to 650 and an increase in the country park.

It was announced at the start of the meeting this week that the Secretary of State had put a holding notice on the application after receiving a solicitor’s letter written on behalf of residents asking for it to be called in.

A number of issues were raised during the meeting from local councillors and residents, including who would pay for a bridge over the railway.

Company Wavin disputes that it owns the land where the bridge needs to be built, but it was confirmed that no legal challenge had been made by the company.

Wiltshire Council officers had recommended that approval should be granted to the plans, with Mike Wilmot, head of development control at Wiltshire Council, stating: “Yes there are changes, but our overall consideration is does it change our assessment of the planning balance?

“No, we still need this development and the benefits of having it outweigh the dis-benefits.”

Putting forward his motion to defer, Coun Christopher Newbury said: “I’m a little concerned hearing from members of the public that we are getting this wrong. I hear what Mr Wilmot says about not wanting to defer and delay it further, but there are reasons why these delays have happened.

“It’s a complicated matter.”