Housing plans will ‘give us certainty’
CONTROVERSIAL housing expansion plans for Northampton have been backed by councillors despite fears being raised about the number of new job and school places needed to back up the developments.
At the beginning of January, The West Northamptonshire Joint Planning Unit (JPU), which is made up of councillors from across Northampton, Daventry, Towcester and South Northamptonshire, unveiled plans showing where 21,500 new houses could be built over the next 15 years.
With plans for 11,000 homes, the majority of the new houses would be on the outskirts of Northampton, but Daventry would also take 2,500, Towcester would take a further 1,500 and Brackley would have 1,760.
During a meeting of the JPU at the Guildhall in Northampton last night, members of the committee agreed to put the plans out for public consultation despite hearing concerns from members of the public and a number of committee members.
Addressing the committee, Roger Kingston, the leader of the Northants Residents Alliance, which opposes the plans, labelled the scheme ‘shocking’.
He said: “With this, you’re just repeating the mistakes that were made when Northampton was expanded towards the east. That development did nothing to save the town from its current state of lingering death.”
Some committee members also raised concerns that despite the plans showing where 21,500 new houses could be built by 2026, the plans only suggested one new secondary school should be built in Northampton and only 16,000 new jobs would be created across the whole area.
But officials from the JPU explained that greater numbers of new secondary schools and jobs were not needed because the new houses would only cater for the area’s current population, which is ageing. As the new houses are designed for the area’s current population, the officials also explained that despite the growth in homes, the overall number of children aged up to 19 in the area would ‘not increase significantly at all’ by 2026.
Northampton Borough Council’s cabinet member for regeneration, Councillor Richard Church (Lib Dem, Kingsthorpe), who is also a member of the JPU, added: “This is not for a massive movement of people into our area from outside and I think it’s very important for people to understand that.
“And if we didn’t have this, we’d be saying to people in 20 years you either live in a substantially overcrowded house or you’re homeless, that’s the truth of it.”
The areas around Northampton which have been highlighted for development include land at Buckton Fields near Whitehills, Dallington Heath near Kings Heath, land near Collingtree, land off Sandy Lane near New Duston, and an area between Wootton and Hardingstone.
The chairman of the JPU’s joint strategic planning committee, Councillor Chris Millar (Con, Guilsborough & West Haddon) told members of the public at last night’s meeting that despite any concerns they had, the plans would at least give certainty about the future.
Members of the public can give their opinions on the plans for six weeks from February 7.
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Comments
There are 17 comments to this article
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Shalom
Wednesday, February 2, 2011 at 10:31 AMPerhaps David Ross or Sir Bruce can build the schools that will be needed ? Because, sure as hell, NCC are not interested in schools anymore !
Shalom
Wednesday, February 2, 2011 at 10:31 AMPerhaps David Ross or Sir Bruce can build the schools that will be needed ? Because, sure as hell, NCC are not interested in schools anymore !
DMT48
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 06:34 PMWhat happened to Cameron's plans to change the rules so that people have more power to reject a local development they don't want? Our councils no longer represent our interests, nor listen to us, in any way - they just spend our money and indulge themselves by making us pay with switched off street lights and the like. Time for them to be disbanded until they can be bothered to open their ears and act on what they hear and stop acting like a quango. I'm all for local government over central, but this lot are a law unto themselves.
Damocles
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 05:10 PMBuilding 21,000 houses with no new schools, hospital capacity or services is not ''having a plan'' its lunacy. How can they reduce services all over the county and deliberately increase demand at the same time. Utterly barking mad.
Damocles
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 05:07 PMHouses are still ludicrously overpriced. An average house price ought to be three times the average wage plus a deposit. i.e. about £100,000. They are not overpriced because there is a shortage, they are overpriced because banks are still enticing customers with two year fixed teaser rates to borrow four and five times income. Its madness. Banks just want everyone in the country to sign away as much as possible of their future incomes -this is what pays their bonuses. Bprrowing money to buy assets falling in value must be about the daftest thing for a young family to do. But that is what moneylenders are selling them. Criminal.
TheCount
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 04:38 PMHrolfK-"they're cheaper at the moment"...but they aren't cheap!!!....the builders land and building costs are a fraction of what they are selling them for. The builders problem is they over-levered in the good times and now looking at massive losses as the bubble de-levers so cant afford to sell at lower prices at the moment. The government bail out ( with out money ) saved them and the banks from going under, now they are still selling over-priced rubbish to the people being taxed to keep them all in business. You couldn't make this up !!!
TheCount
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 04:38 PMHrolfK-"they're cheaper at the moment"...but they aren't cheap!!!....the builders land and building costs are a fraction of what they are selling them for. The builders problem is they over-levered in the good times and now looking at massive losses as the bubble de-levers so cant afford to sell at lower prices at the moment. The government bail out ( with out money ) saved them and the banks from going under, now they are still selling over-priced rubbish to the people being taxed to keep them all in business. You couldn't make this up !!!
Josie Mabbutt
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 03:31 PMWhat with the new road up Sandy lane and all the proposed new house building there will be more wild life displaced and killed,Where there is new roads they allways have to build houses We will soon have to go miles outside town to see a field has they are takeing up all our countryside ie sandy lane and dallington heathThis will not be social housing it will be private if they want to help people build more bungalows for people that are getting older so they can down size leaving the bigger houses for familys
HrolfK
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 02:44 PMThe Count is forgetting that developers aren't building houses precisely because they're cheaper at the moment. Costs haven't changed just the amount of profit developers can make. They'll sit on the promise of easy planning permission on green field sites for years until desperation sets in, and more complicated brown field sites will be ignored. There's a shortage of houses because developers want it that way – to keep prices inflated and delude politicians into freeing up countryside to build on, no other reason. Northampton can expand, but developers are the last people who should be left to plan it.
hecto
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 01:27 PMIf the main political parties continue to mess up, then high security underground bunker style houses would probably be sensible.
Damocles
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 11:27 AMThese people will approve anything officers put in front of them.
Reginald Molehusband
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 11:01 AMSo much for localisation, huh? Quite how building 21,000 houses is somehow going to stop the town being a dump has escaped me.
Common sense
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 10:11 AMAbout time the Councils had the courage to agree a plan for the future of Northampton. as this plan runs from 2001 to 2026 they should begin planning 2026 to 2050 and they just might have it ready in time. Far too much credance is given to the naysayers and nimbys in Northampton and that is why it has become a dump. Trying to cater for the lowest common denominator rather than having aspirations has that effect.
tish
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 10:03 AMWe have undeveloped land near us in Kingsthorpe,three years ago it went before the planning committee and when we expressed concern over parking for over 150 cars a halfwit councillor at the meeting said he thought it may not be a problem as the prospective owners of the new flats may all use bikes not cars, you couldn't make it up could you?
Chrispy1
Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 09:47 AMThese councillorsJPU must think we are dumb! 21,000 new houses, but it won't increase the population nor will they need schools or jobs? What a load of twaddle! There are BOUND to be children in some of these new homes, so where will they go to school? Utter, utter, rubbish from Richard Church (as ever).
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