Our EBBRAG Newsletter No.8 is all about a joint “call to arms” for all those fighting unwanted developments wherever in wonderful Warminster.
From an EBBRAG member to everyone who is against the scourge of development on Warminster’s treasured green fields and nature areas:
Warminster Residents for Warminster Town
It cannot have escaped the notice of anyone who lives in Warminster the scale of new housing currently being built, together with the number of speculative applications emerging from developers, in what is beginning to feel like a building ‘frenzy’.
Even if the Warminster Neighbourhood Plan, in its current revision, were to allocate a site for development, there is little protection from these speculative bids, simply because Wiltshire as a county is unable to demonstrate a five year land supply for housing and it has withdrawn its draft Local Plan (read the article in The Warminster Journal – June 2nd). This makes Warminster, together with all settlements across the county, vulnerable to the speculative greed of the developers.
So, what can we do? It strikes me as a resident of this lovely town that we need to work together to oppose what is happening. We need to understand the importance of planning based objections and we need the residents of all of the sites under threat to be giving similar messages:
No building on green landscapes; explore redeveloping brown field sites first.
No building which has a negative impact on existing wildlife.
No building outside the settlement boundary.
No building which is not strictly needed.
No building which increases flood risk and damage to the River Wylye – the reality is that any building is likely to do both.
No building which diminishes the attractiveness of the town for people who live here, in terms of its setting, transport, health and education provision and preservation of local services, history and conservation.
There seems to be an accepted notion that simply building new homes is a recipe for growth. Real growth requires attention to the needs of the local population beyond simply having a place to live.
Building hundreds of new homes without due consideration to the impact on the everyday lives of existing and new residents is not acceptable.
Developers are very good at presenting their proposals in an attractive and positive way but we must not lose sight of the fact that they are generally not driven by altruistic motives; what drives them is profit.
A year ago, to my shame, I had very little insight into any of these issues and almost no knowledge of how the planning system works. I wasn’t even aware of proposals for the West Warminster Urban Extension until they began alterations to the road layout on that side of town.
As a member of EBBRAG, I have learnt a great deal about both the politics of planning and building, together with some of the intricacies of how planning processes work. I have learnt that if we want to shape outcomes, then we need to understand how to fight and object and make our voices heard.
Yes, I object to building at Home Farm but I also fully support those residents of Damask Way, Ashley Coombe and Westbury Road for whom there is still the chance to thwart the desires of the developers.
Many of the planning reasons which EBBRAG has spent the last year researching and amassing information for, which we will use to object to Bellway’s application for 135 dwellings at Home Farm will be equally powerful against development in other parts of our town.
Warminster is our town, our home. If we want to preserve what is good about it we need to speak with one voice, rather than approaching each development as a separate battle.
Let’s work together.