West Oxfordshire Housing Consultation

Consultation on West Oxfordshire’s housing plans ends tomorrow, with proposed housing figures up 73% from the last draft.  CPRE West Oxon is calling for lower numbers, especially in view of the District’s past over-delivery.

 

You have until just 5pm tomorrow, Friday 19 September, to respond to West Oxfordshire District Council’s plans for providing 9,450 houses in the area by 2029 (525 per annum).    Please tell them to re-think their housing numbers and prioritise brownfield sites.   

See West Oxfordshire District Council website for full details of their proposals and how to respond.

CPRE welcomes the decision by West Oxfordshire District Council to set a housing target that is lower than the recommendations of the Oxfordshire Strategic Housing Market Assessment. However, this number is still nearly 3,000 more than the “economic growth” option in the original draft Local Plan, which WODC recognised would put infrastructure under pressure, with potential negative sustainability impact.

CPRE believes the SHMA is unsound and unsustainable and should not be used as a benchmark in setting the District’s housing policy. CPRE therefore urges the District Council to further reduce the housing target, especially in view of the District’s past over-delivery of housing. 

It is clear that the present SHMA grossly exaggerates the likely real housing need in Oxfordshire; if adopted the repercussions of this policy will be as far-reaching & damaging to the rural way of life as the Beeching cuts to the railways 50 years ago. 

CPRE is particularly concerned that current inadequate infrastructure, such as the shortcomings of the congested A40, the travel artery of the district, is being treated as an afterthought. This issue should be tackled before more housing is considered.

And we are also calling on the District to give more thought to a brownfield first policy, which could save some of our much loved local landscape.

Please see our full response below.   

CPRE_West_Oxon_response_to_Local_Plan_Consultation_Sept_14.pdf