An application to build 150 new homes on Glebe and Tobacconist Farms has been withdrawn, at least temporarily, following strong campaigning by Save Glebe Farm, under the Protect Our Space banner.
A planning application for a major development at Tobacconist Farm and Glebe Farm was submitted in November 2015. A new Action Group, Save Glebe Farm, came together under the Protect Our Space banner to oppose this scheme, which is outside the settlement boundary, on a greenfield site and at odds with Stroud's Local Plan policies.
A public consultation for the Glebe Farm development took place in July 2015, hosted by Archstone and Redrow Homes. The exhibition boards can be found here, courtesy of Archstone / Redrow. This development of more than 140 homes was first discussed privately with members of Minchinhampton Parish Council in 2014. The application includes a promise of land for a new doctors' surgery, along with other contributions, most of which are mandatory obligations on the developer. These are discussed here.
The site has been rejected in Stroud's Local Plan as a strategic site for development. This omission was challenged by the developers and Stroud District Council's response to the Government's Inspector is reproduced at the bottom of this page. Stroud District Council supports development opportunities within the town, protecting the sensitive AONB setting of the town and supporting the Parish to bring forward a Neighbourhood Plan if local needs warrant it.
This is a very significant development, which would have a major impact on Minchinhampton if permitted and encourage many other developers to come forward. We believe that permission can only be granted if Stroud District Council is allowed to believe that the scheme has the backing of the community.
More than 700 people objected to the application, which for now has been withdrawn. The site features in Stroud District Council's Local Plan Review consultation as a potential Strategic Development Site.
A public consultation for the Glebe Farm development took place in July 2015, hosted by Archstone and Redrow Homes. The exhibition boards can be found here, courtesy of Archstone / Redrow. This development of more than 140 homes was first discussed privately with members of Minchinhampton Parish Council in 2014. The application includes a promise of land for a new doctors' surgery, along with other contributions, most of which are mandatory obligations on the developer. These are discussed here.
The site has been rejected in Stroud's Local Plan as a strategic site for development. This omission was challenged by the developers and Stroud District Council's response to the Government's Inspector is reproduced at the bottom of this page. Stroud District Council supports development opportunities within the town, protecting the sensitive AONB setting of the town and supporting the Parish to bring forward a Neighbourhood Plan if local needs warrant it.
This is a very significant development, which would have a major impact on Minchinhampton if permitted and encourage many other developers to come forward. We believe that permission can only be granted if Stroud District Council is allowed to believe that the scheme has the backing of the community.
More than 700 people objected to the application, which for now has been withdrawn. The site features in Stroud District Council's Local Plan Review consultation as a potential Strategic Development Site.
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Below is Policy SO1: Accessible Communities from the emerging Stroud Local Plan. Here, Minchinhampton Parish is shown with up to 100 new homes in the period to 2031, with development focused on strategic sites along the Golden Valley.
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On the right are Stroud District Council's reasons for omitting Glebe Farm from the Local Plan, which has now been adopted. "The Council believes that on balance the appropriate response is to support development opportunities within the town, protect the sensitive AONB setting of the town and support the Parish to bring forward a Neighbourhood Plan if local, as opposed to strategic needs, warrant it." The Council believes that continued growth in housing from windfall sites, at the rate of 10-15 a year, will deliver a 20% growth, in line with its expectations for a town of Minchinhampton's type. |
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Invitation to the developers' consultation in July