#Stroud2040 – planning for our future
Published: Thursday, 22 November, 2018
Stroud District Council is hitting the road and reaching out online to get as many views as possible on how the district will look by 2040.
The council must find room for 12,800 homes by then, and is consulting on the main issues around where we live, work and visit before it is finally adopted in 2021 as the district’s blueprint for development.
To gain maximum response, the council is running 12 public exhibitions, holding a town and parish council conference, communicating directly with key stakeholders and individuals, there is an online survey to fill in, and comments made on the council’s social media channels will be collated.
"Stroud District Council was the first in Gloucestershire to get its Local Plan signed off in 2015 but we were told we must revisit it and we have to find room for more homes," said Council Leader Doina Cornell.
"We must address this issue, so that we retain control of where development will be, rather than being told by Government.
"It’s really important that as many people as possible have their say, via the online survey, public exhibitions, social media and more traditional methods. The proposed sites are not set in stone and alternatives can be put forward at this stage."
Garden villages, brownfield regeneration, meeting local needs at villages, supporting our town centres are all up for debate. The 12,800 target calculated by central Government is driven by a high need and relatively high cost of housing – it must be reached or Stroud District Council could lose some control of the planning process and Government could instead dictate where homes are built locally.
In this consultation, the council wants to know whether people think the Emerging Strategy addresses future development needs. At this stage, alternative approaches and development sites can be considered too.
Stage 2 of the Local Plan Review, The Emerging Strategy public consultation, runs until 18th January 2019 and all the details and a link to the online survey are at www.stroud.gov.uk/stroud2040
Comments can also be made at www.facebook.com/strouddistrictcouncil/ and @StroudDC on Twitter using the hashtag #Stroud2040.
Public Exhibition Dates:
Stroud
Subscription Rooms, George Street
Saturday 24th November, 10.30am – 1.30pm
Kingswood
Village Hall, Wickwar Road
Monday 26th November, 2.30pm – 6.30pm
Painswick
Town Hall, Victoria Square
Wednesday 28th November, 2.30pm – 6.30pm
Sharpness
Village Hall, Oldminster Lane
Saturday 1st December, 10.30am – 1.30pm
Slimbridge
Village Hall, St Johns Road
Monday 3rd December, 2.30pm – 6.30pm
Nailsworth
Mortimer Room, Old Market
Wednesday 5th December, 2.30pm – 6.30pm
Cam
Parish Council Office
Saturday 8th December, 10.30am – 1.30pm
Dursley
Methodist Hall, Castle Street
Tuesday 11th December, 2.30pm – 6.30pm
Minchinhampton
Youth Hub, Tobacconist Road
Wednesday 12th December, 2.30pm – 6.00pm
Stonehouse
Town Hall, High Street
Thursday 13th December, 2.30pm – 6.30pm
Wotton
Town Hall, Market Street
Monday 17th December, 1.30pm – 5.30pm
Hardwicke
Village Hall, Green Lane
Tuesday 18th December, 2.30pm – 6.30pm
The consultation is part of reviewing the current Stroud District Local Plan – it was approved by a Government-appointed inspector in 2015 with the proviso that it reviews it soon after.
In the current Local Plan period from 2006 to 2031, the target for Stroud District Council is 11,400 homes, of which 5,120 have been built and 1,400 have been allocated. Currently 456 homes per year are being built in the Stroud District. However the new National Planning Policy Framework announced in July raises the target to 638 per annum – the nearest to this figure in Stroud District was 573 homes in 2014/15.
The first stage was an Issues and Options public consultation, which took place during autumn 2017.
The main areas proposed for development in the strategy are:
- Cam: Consolidation of growth to the north east of the town linking the parish centre with improved facilities at Cam and Dursley railway station and completing the linear park and local cycling and walking network; new housing development, community and open space uses to the north west, improving access to Jubilee Playing Field and creating a landscaped buffer between the existing edge of Cam and the M5 motorway. Regeneration of brownfield sites is proposed for Cam, Dursley and Stonehouse.
- Dursley: Supporting town centre improvements; housing development and open space uses to the south east; improvements to the local cycling and walking network.
- Stonehouse: Supporting town centre improvements; extensions to planned growth to the north west of the town including enhancing community facilities and additional open space; supporting improvements to the canal corridor and local walking and cycling routes.
- Stroud: Regenerating large scale brownfield sites for housing, employment and canal related tourism; supporting the better use of edge of town centre sites and public realm improvements; supporting improvements to the canal corridor and local walking and cycling routes.
- Newtown/Sharpness: A new garden village community incorporating housing, employment, shopping, community and open space, with the opportunity to transform local transport facilities and access to new and enhanced facilities for existing residents and businesses.
- Wisloe (south of Cambridge and Slimbridge): A new garden village community incorporating housing, employment, shopping, community and open space with the opportunity to improve access to local facilities for existing residents and businesses whilst protecting the setting of existing villages.
- At Berkeley, Minchinhampton, Nailsworth, Painswick, Brimscombe, King's Stanley, Kingswood, Leonard Stanley, North Woodchester and Thrupp: Smaller development sites will be focused on meeting local housing needs and on enhancing or delivering new services and facilities which have been identified as lacking in those places.
Any queries or suggestions relating to the consultation can be directed to the Planning Strategy team on local.plan@stroud.gov.uk or 01453 754 143.
Paper copies of the Emerging Strategy are available to view at:
Parish and town council offices open to the public
Public libraries
Stroud District Council offices, Ebley Mill
The Tourist Information Centre at the Subscription Rooms, Stroud
Email responses and queries to: local.plan@stroud.gov.uk