More and more people are making use of their Community Forum to try and improve local services and raise issues of local concern.
- Residents in Birstall were unhappy that the swimming pool in Longslade Community College was no longer going to be open to the public outside school hours. Discussion at the local Area Forum meeting resulted in the College working directly with local users to find ways the pool can remain open.
- Following the Government’s shortlisting of ‘Pennbury’ as a potential Eco-town, the ‘Have your Say’ meetings in Kibworth and Tugby were the first opportunity for residents in the surrounding area to find out how the District and County Council were planning to respond to this challenge.
- At the Blaby South Community Forum residents and Parish Councillors from Sapcote, Sharnford, Stoney Stanton and surrounding villages expressed their concerns about the volume and speed of Heavy Goods Vehicles travelling through their villages. In response officers promised to look into a range of measures to reduce the impact of traffic and improve road safety in the short term, while explaining how they were looking to provide longer-term solutions.

Community Forums give you the opportunity to discuss local issues with your local Parish, District and County Councillors and representatives from the Police and the Health Service. There are 27 Community Forums across they county. To find out more about forum meetings in your local area, please visit www.leicestershireforums.org

Contact: Derk van der Wardt, 0116 3057581

PLANNING APPLICATION 08/03581/OX

Jelson Ltd. (Mr. Terry McGreal)
Application: 08/0358/1OX Residential Development (Outline):
Land Off Winchester Road (North Of Blaby Golf Course) Blaby, Leicester.
Blaby Parish Council resolved to make the following objections to the proposed development, as detailed: -

1. The application site is outside the limits of the Blaby Built-up area, as identified in the adopted Blaby District Local Plan, and therefore the proposal is contrary to the policies of that local plan which seek to restrict new developments to within the existing limits of the built-up area.
2. The application site lies within an area wherein the open countryside policies of the Blaby District Local Plan and the Leicestershire Structure Plan apply. These policies seek to limit the loss of agricultural land.
3. The proposed development would seriously erode the existing open land which effectively defines and separates Blaby from Countesthorpe. This would be contrary to the Green Wedge policies of the Blaby District Local Plan and the District Planning Authority, which seek to safeguard the physical identity of communities. Neither community wishes to lose its identity and become part of an “urban sprawl”. (“Green-Wedges - the character of important green wedge areas between the built-up areas on the fringe of Leicester, and adjoining, physically separate, communities, wherever possible, will be protected and retained. There will be a presumption in favour of land in Agricultural/Horticultural/ Community and Recreational use remaining in its present use. There will be a presumption against the intensification of a development.”).
4. The proposed development would overburden the existing foul drainage system.
5. It is feared that the gradient of the land (Winchester Road) and the proposal to develop a portion of green wedge, which acts as a natural soak away, could lead to greater surface water and increase the potential risk of flooding.
6. Local knowledge indicates that Blaby does not have the infrastructure to deal with further residential development.
7. Schools Local schools accommodating Blaby schoolchildren, Thistly Meadow Primary is already at full capacity - 2 mobile classrooms having been recently sited to keep up with demand, Blaby Stokes Primary School and Greenfields Primary School (Countesthorpe) are also at full capacity. Leysland Highschool and Countesthorpe College too could not accommodate the numbers of children which this development would produce.
8. The route to Thistly Meadow, Leysland High School and Countesthorpe College is along the busy Winchester Road. Already over 1,000 Blaby school children use this road daily. To add more traffic would be to endanger Blaby school children more, especially at the point where the proposed access on Winchester Road would cut across the existing SUSTRANS 6 cycle route located on Winchester Road (originally constructed to be a safe route to school for Blaby children; even before SUSTRANS route 6 came into use); cutting across this cyclepath would endanger users and would be contrary to the wishes of the County Council.
9. Other amenities in Blaby are presently inadequate and would not cope with an increase in population or vehicles: -
• Parking – The District Planning Authority is aware; car parking spaces in the Village centre are inadequate to crisis point.
• Doctors - query is there sufficient capacity.
• Dentist – query is there sufficient capacity.
10. None of the roads immediately affected by the proposed development could cope with extra traffic to the degree proposed, and traffic problems in other areas of the Village would be exacerbated as the volume of vehicles overall increases.
• Southway – Unsuitable for more traffic and was not built as a major through road.
• Southway – Junction with Winchester Road – This junction is dangerous due to the “blind” exit into Winchester Road.
• Winchester Road – The access from the proposed development would be extremely hazardous.
11. The proposed number of dwellings (180 houses approximately) for this development shows insufficient allocation of car parking provision (upwards of 360 vehicle spaces would be required).
• Please note the decision for this Planning Application is currently under Appeal - date is set for the 14th November 2008 .

PLANNING APPEAL - PERSIMMON HOMES (NORTH MIDLANDS) LTD. RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT OF 110 HOUSES WITH ASSOCIATED LANDSCAPING AND INFRASTRUCTURE - LAND TO THE NORTH OF BORROWCUP CLOSE, COUNTESTHORPE.

Persimmon Homes has appealed to the Secretary of State of Communities and Local Government against Blaby District Council's decision to refuse the planning application for the above development. The appeal will be heard at a Public Inquiry, date to be confirmed.

The objections made by Blaby Parish Council when the planning application was considered are:

* The application is classed as a major development and would affect the infrastructure and amenities of the whole area.

* The extra traffic created by the development will exacerbate problems experienced by local schools in the vicinity (Leysland High School and Countesthorpe Community College).

Reasons for refusal by Blaby District Council when the planning application was considered were:

* The proposed development is located in an area identified in the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Structure Plan and the Blaby District Local Plan as a Green Wedge. In such areas there is strong presumption against development except in specific circumstances which do not apply in this case. The proposal is therefore contrary to Strategy Policy 5 of the Structure Plan and Policy C3 of the Blaby District Local Plan.

*Policy 2A of the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Structure Plan sets out a sequential approach to the location of new development (including housing). The proposed site has low priority in the hierarchy being "(e) Land within or adjoining Rural Centres, or other settlements which are or will be well served by public transport, particularly where this involves the use of previously developed land". Other more suitable sites may be identified through the Local Development Framework process which better fit the hierarchy specified in policy 2A and more suitable in the context of policy2B of the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Structure Plan.

* In the context of the operative Development Plans there is no lack of housing provision to meet identified needs and to provide a deliverable 5 year supply of housing in accordance with Planning Policy Statement 3. Whilst it is recognised that housing requirements may increase when the Secretary of State issues the Regional Spatial Strategy in autumn 2008, the appropriate mechanism to identify sites is through the Local Development Framework process. It is not necessary or appropriate to bring sites forward in advance of this process

* The layout shown on the submitted illustrative layout in inadequate. It does not provide a substantial buffer to the green wedge along the northern boundary of the site. The close proximity of dwellings to this boundary of the site will make them visually prominent when viewed from the green wedge to the north of the site and beyond.

Councillor Pauline Jordan will be attending the Public Inquiry, and will give Blaby Parish Council's views.
Please note Public Inquiry will be held at Blaby District Council in the Council Chamber, commencing at 10.00am on 16th September 2008. It is anticipated this could last for three days.

The appellants grounds of appeal and the Council's reason for refusal and associated documents are available online at www.planningportal.gov.uk in the Planning Appeals Advice Notes area.