Joint Core Strategy Consultation reminder

Granted the timing could be better and the consultation period longer but the future of Cheltenham and the Greenbelt and green fields that surrounds our town is currently up for grabs and you need to make your views known!

A draft plan for future housing has been published which will have an impact on Cheltenham and the surrounding area. This plan has been drawn up by officers from Gloucester, Tewkesbury and Cheltenham councils and has now been published and is out for consultation.

The plan, called the Joint Core Strategy (JCS), says that up to 36,800 homes will be needed in the area covered by the three Councils by 2031, based on the County Council’s projections for population growth.

The JCS proposes four different options:-

Scenario A would see 16,200 homes being built by 2031. It would involve building on ‘brownfield’ (previously developed) sites which would mainly be in Gloucester and Cheltenham as well as building where planning permission has already been approved or where land has been allocated in current Local Plans - for example, the site at Farm Lane (pictured below), Shurdington on the border with Leckhampton is included in Option A for 350 houses because it is already in Tewkesbury Borough Councils Local Plan.

Scenarios B,C and D would include the housing proposed in Scenario A plus development on new areas of land, including Greenbelt land and around Cheltenham and also fields in Leckhampton which are earmarked for 1,300 houses. Scenario C involves building 36,800 houses whereas Scenarios B and D are just below and above that figure.

The following local public exhibitions and events have been arranged where you can meet with council officers to discuss the proposals:-

Friday, 20 January 10 am-5pm Regent Arcade, Cheltenham

Saturday, 21 January 10 am-5pm Regent Arcade, Cheltenham

You must submit any comments on the JCS by 12 February 2012. You can make your comments through the JCS website at www.gct-jcs.org or by email to info@gct-jcs.org or in writing to the JCS Team, Municipal Offices, Promenade, Cheltenham, GL50 9SA. You can also contact the JCS team on 0800 073 1441.