Time to comment on Tewkesbury's Borough Plan

Now is the time to share your views on the future of planning and development in Tewkesbury Borough.

At a recent meeting of Tewkesbury Borough Council, the ‘Preferred Options’ Tewkesbury Borough Plan was given the green light to go out for consultation to give residents the opportunity to comment on plans for future development in the borough up to 2031. The consultation is open until Monday 26 November 2018.

The Tewkesbury Borough Plan sits underneath the Joint Core Strategy - the over-arching strategic planning document for Gloucester, Cheltenham and Tewkesbury which sets out how much growth needs to be accommodated in the three areas and the broad strategy for how that growth will be delivered.

The Tewkesbury Borough Plan, on the other hand, provides detailed and locally-specific planning policies on issues in Tewkesbury Borough that the Joint Core Strategy doesn’t cover, such as housing, employment, retail, the urban and natural environment and transport. It will also include smaller-scale sites allocated for housing and employment development.

The ‘Preferred Options’ Tewkesbury Borough Plan is the next step in the process of creating a final version of the plan. It builds on previous stages of the process (including the ‘Draft Policies’ and ‘Site Options’ consultation in February 2015) to refine the plan into a document that the council believes will promote sustainable development in the borough, identifying options that would provide around 700 new homes and 45 hectares of employment land.

The Maisemore housing allocations included in the consultation plan.  Both sites A and B have planning permission already.  Site B, however, has an area designated as restored countryside and residents may want to remind Tewkesbury Borough Council of this and ask that it is put outside the village boundary. 

Councillor Rob Bird, Leader of Tewkesbury Borough Council, said: "Our Borough Plan is so important, because it will enable us to meet the varied housing and employment needs that our different communities have told us about, in particular providing specific help for rural areas to thrive, whilst continuing to support more urban communities.

“We aim to assist the reasonable housing and development aspirations of both residents and businesses, whilst protecting communities and the environment against clear harm.

“Our draft Borough Plan provides detailed policies to drive quality housing, thriving communities, a prosperous economy, and sustain vital services and facilities - now we need to hear what you think."

Tewkesbury Borough Council is now seeking views on the ‘Preferred Options’ plan and would welcome comments and opinions on the policies and sites in the document. All comments received by this deadline will be considered and will help to inform the preparation of the next version of the plan, which will ultimately need to be independently examined by a Government-appointed Inspector.

To read the plan and make comments, visit www.tewkesbury.gov.uk/boroughplan

The plan is also available to view at the Public Services Centre on Gloucester Road in Tewkesbury, or at libraries and advice centres throughout Tewkesbury Borough.