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FILANDS

5/9/2016

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Here is my personal submission re the planning application for 71 new dwellings at Filands.


Re: 16/07288/OUT Land South of Filands (2nd Phase)
 
I am writing to register my OBJECTION to this planning application, which should be rejected. The main reasons for this are:
  • Filands is not a site in the Malmesbury Neighbourhood Plan and there is significant opposition to building on this site.
  • Extra housing is not required.
  • Precedent for future development at Filands, contra to the Neighbourhood Plan.
 
Principle of Neighbourhood Planning
Whilst I am now objecting to this application in a personal capacity, I am a Town Councillor and represented Malmesbury Town Council on the Malmesbury Neighbourhood Steering Group who drew up our Neighbourhood Plan in response to local residents feedback and other expert guidance.
 
The Neighbourhood Plan was voted through in a three parish referendum as per the Government’s Localism Act and was the first Wiltshire. 90% of those who voted in the Referendum said YES to the Neighbourhood Plan. This means that Wiltshire Council and others must use this document when considering planning applications.  To allow planning permission when an application does not conform to our Neighbourhood Plan (i.e. this site is NOT included) will undermine our Plan and set unwanted local and national precedents.  The people of the Malmesbury Area used their democratic right under the Localism Act to define how the place where they live and work should grow. This did not include development on Filands and there was much local opposition at the time. (see Chapter 1 and Policies 1, 2 and 3 therein).  Even the applicants current submitted Statement of Community Engagement July 2016 shows that there is still significant opposition to building on this site. If the views of local residents and the principles and policies in our Neighbourhood Plan are ignored - then this will be a fundamental threat to our democracy, Neighbourhood Plans throughout the country and Government.
 
 
 
Housing Numbers
Our Malmesbury Area housing target for 2026, as laid down by Government and allocated in the Wiltshire Core Strategy , will be met in the next year or so. This will be around 9 years before the target date, so there is no need for extra housing. (See Page 10 of the Neighbourhood Plan for these figures and also Policy 5 Page 24 which states that “Planning applications for new housing, including conversions, should  be  assessed  against the demand net of cumulative consents given in the period, not the gross demand identified at the beginning of the period”.)
 
Neither do I believe that the hypothesis that more housing is needed in the shorter term because of the Dyson expansion. Projected growth of their workforce was taken into account during the preparation of the Neighbourhood Plan. The amount of staff working at Dyson will grow over a number of years and not all at once. A large amount of engineers do not wish to live locally, but in the larger towns nearby. This was evidenced through a travel survey of Dyson staff.  So, given these factors plus the large growth in development of other areas close by, such as Tetbury and the potential huge 2000 dwelling development near Kemble in the longer term - I do not see any evidence of a requirement for extra housing in the Malmesbury Area.
 
Also, I believe that Wiltshire Council has met it’s Five Year Land Supply target, so this should not be a reason to allow this application.
 
 
 
Precedent For Future Development at Filands
I would like to remind you that Gleeson Strategic Land challenged both our Neighbourhood Plan during it’s preparation and also took the Government to court re the 180 dwellings development application which is adjacent to this site.  Outline planning permission was finally granted after the Government lost the second of two judicial reviews. You will see from the attachments to this email that there have been plans to build along the whole of Filands (the masterplan is from their brochure). Also an EIA was made for approx 30 acres on this site around 2011 as was explained to our local Wiltshire Councillor by their Managing Director (as attached letter 23rd September 2011).  Lastly, in a public interview in our local newspaper, the Wilts and Glos Standard on 18th September 2014 http://www.wiltsglosstandard.co.uk/news/northwilts11482796.Developer_blames_legal_battle_
with_Govt_for_decision_to_sell_Malmesbury_housing_site/
?ref=rss
   Mr. Scott Chamberlain, their managing director, was quoted as saying “We still have a significant interest in the rest of the land.”
To allow this application would clearly set a precedent for the applicant to expect planning approval to develop further parts of Filands. This again would be in direct contradiction to the Neighbourhood Plan.
 
 

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Backbridge Farm Planning Application

4/9/2016

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Backbridge Farm Planning Application Re 16/06401/FUL

I have been asked if I have submitted comments about this planning application to Wiltshire Council. The answer is yes - I have emailed in my personal capacity to object to the application to Wiltshire Council.

Click here to read my submission.


Points about design, amenity and connectivity have been raised by others, so I have concentrated on 5 major points where I feel the application deviates from our Neighbourhood Plan.

These concern:
  • The Principle of Neighourhood Planning;
  • Housing Numbers;
  • Mixed Housing and Tenure;
  • School Extensions;
  • AONB;

I support development on this site, but hopefully residents' objections and the robustness of our Neighbourhood Plan will result in positive amendments to the planning application.
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MNW - STILL SPEAKING TOGETHER

15/11/2015

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MALMESBURY NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANNING WATCH
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Malmesbury Town Council took a decision to dissolve the Malmesbury Neighbourhood Steering Group - those who worked on the Neighbourhood Plan. This was without even referring to the Chair or the majority of the community representatives of the group. This decision was also contrary to the advice of a senior planning expert, who described the ongoing and important role for the MNSG.

I did not agree with this disappointing action, because of the ongoing part the MNSG had to play and also losing the voice of many non-Council reps such as the local schools, who for instance as the experts were able to come together and shape vital decisions about local school provision. I wrote about this previously - click here to read "Gagging Our Community Voice."  

However, it is Wiltshire Council which is the Planning Authority for the Malmesbury Area. So I am very pleased to report that our Wiltshire Councillor Simon Killane is keen to continue supporting community led representation in respect of the Neighbourhood Plan and planning in our area. 

In his own words " it is my responsibility to make sure your collective voice is heard loud and clear when the council (Wiltshire) makes decisions about planning applications in Malmesbury".



Click here for the Malmesbury Neighbourhood Planning Watch website.






Cllr. Killane described the reasons for this as follows: 
"Our Neighbourhood must have a strong collective voice to make sure the policies in the Neighbourhood Plan that we worked tirelessly to build are adhered to and that any attempt to undermine it are robustly challenged. I am your local elected Wiltshire Councillor on the decision making council authority that decide on planning applications and it is my responsibility to make sure your collective voice is heard loud and clear when the council makes decisions about planning applications in Malmesbury. The recent unwise decision of Malmesbury Town Council to disband the MNSG does not stop us from continuing to be the eyes and ears of the community and make sure that Community Led Planning continues to shape a better development future for all of us."

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Riverside

5/11/2015

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The Riverside Centre is a new community centre which will be in the industrial looking building (old Youth Centre) next to the Co-Op in Gloucester Rd, Malmesbury. This 'Campus' project is a Wiltshire Council initiative.

The idea is that the centre will be run by The Friends of Riverside for community groups and individuals to use  and will also provide a place for services to be delivered by Wiltshire Council and other organisations and somewhere for these organisations to 'hot desk'. Last night an 'update' presentation was given at the Area Board meeting and some of that information is shared here.

I am part of Friends of Riverside and personally believe we are very fortunate that Malmesbury was added into the 'Campus' programme, which has so far concentrated on much larger centres such as Corsham. Also, our circumstances are a little different to the set up of the others, in that our building was originally leased by Wiltshire Council for Youth Services, but it is no longer needed for this purpose due to reorganisation.

So why a Campus on this particular site?

Well, I can see some very positive reasons for this:
  • The wonderful skate park at the back of the building, which residents and Wiltshire Council worked together for around 12 years to make happen. (I don't believe anyone would wish to see young people lose this facility. This might be a possibility should the leased building no longer be required for community use).
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  • The ability for residents to access some services locally and not to have to travel to nearby towns  and for the service providers to use the 'hot desking' facility. (For example, Children's Services are currently under review by Wiltshire Council. Should it be required, then there is the potential for some services to be delivered at Riverside. Not forgetting that it could also be a meeting place for local Parents and Toddler/ Young Childrens groups etc as well as other users).
  • There is and will be a need for extra community space, because of the approx 400 new houses which are being built at this end of Malmesbury Town on two different sites (not forgetting more housing in the rest of Malmesbury and the Community Area).
  • The location is just across from the long stay car park, which has 2 hours free parking and much  reduced charges for all day parking and it is also quite close to Malmesbury Primary School.
  • The interior of the building is already set up for community use, although there are a few internal structural changes which will be made, for example to open up the space and to provide a community cafe area. There will also be new toilet facilities for the Skate Park and a separate entrance. Many of the rooms will basically remain as they are, but will be freshly painted and with new flooring.
  • Wiltshire Council have made a commitment with the long term lease.
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After working on this project for more than 18 months, the Shadow Community Operations Board, the 'working party' for Wiltshire Council, has now become the easier titled Friends of Riverside. We are now at the exciting stage of seeing building plans (subject to consent) for planning approval. Although the refurbishment will be very modest compared to other campuses. I am sure the Centre will be well used and valued.
Re a future timeline, we anticipate an open presentation evening next January for people to see the old building and plans for the changes. We will also be looking then at expressions of interest by community groups and individuals who may wish to use the centre. 

Finally, we are hoping for a midsummer opening date, once all the work to the building has been completed.

4 Comments

Gagging Our Community Voice

2/11/2015

2 Comments

 
I cannot understand the logic behind the decision to dissolve the Malmesbury Neighbourhood Steering Group without even talking to it's members, or the Chair or Wiltshire Council who are responsible for Planning decisions!

At the last Malmesbury Town Council meeting (27th Oct)
I asked that this decision was reviewed and overturned.
Disappointingly, there seemed to be very little support for this from most other Councillors and especially the Mayor, John Gundry. 

In fact it was Cllr. Roger Budgen (Malmesbury Town Councillor and Chair of St. Paul Malmesbury Without Parish Council, also part of the Plan Area) who proposed this in the first place under the premise that the work of the MNSG has been completed - despite a senior planning expert and the Deputy Leader of  Wiltshire Council advising the Town Council of the vital role the MNSG still has to play!

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Click here to read my request!

The MNSG comprised of 21 community based members who worked together to produce a truly local plan. (Reps included Governors from our Schools, The Civic Trust, Retail/ High St, Residents Association, Malmesbury Rivers Valley Trust, Doctor's Surgery, Burnham House/ Older People, Younger Peoples Rep etc).

I can only say that personally I am concerned that those involved and also Wiltshire Council Planning were NOT referred to beforehand and I am very disappointed with the action to do away with the MNSG and effectively gag our only real 'across the board' Community voice! 

You too can show your concern on this important issue, by letting your Wiltshire Councillor (local planning authority) know your view, by emailing:


Wiltshire Councillor for Malmesbury - Simon Killane simon@thepeoplesrep.co.uk

and if you wish to, then please feel free to copy me in also - my email is kim@kimpower.co.uk
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Burnham House Update

7/10/2015

1 Comment

 
This time last year the MNSG were gearing up for the home straight on the Malmesbury Neighbourhood Plan referendum.  One great element in the Plan is the development of Burnham House into 49 assisted care living apartments for the elderly.

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I am delighted to say that the site is now being cleared and it won't be too long before the new development becomes a welcome reality! 

This is an update from February this year where details of the plans, dates and potential jobs were mentioned as per Abbeyfield, who will be running this. Click here to read this.

This has been a community project with Wiltshire Council and local people had input into the plans and are continuing to work to ensure that this new development is as fantastic as it looks in the plans.
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The Jackdaw Has Crossed The Line

13/8/2015

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I used to think that The Jackdaw was a fun, satirical publication about Malmesbury life and supported it with a subscription.  Sadly however, a nasty and defamatory article by David Witt appeared in the May edition, which crossed the line into untruthful character assassination.

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The article commented on individual Councillors, in particular myself, the Town Council and more specifically Mayor Making, both for this year and 2013.  I have always taken previous mentions in this magazine in good part, but for me this has gone way beyond what is acceptable. To say I am disappointed and disgusted by this article is an understatement!

The Jackdaw has now published a full apology to me in their August edition, along with a 'right of reply' article written by myself, to set the record straight.

Lastly, I think it is important to point out that there are many other contributors who write really good articles for The Jackdaw, especially about local history and happenings. So let's hope that now David Witt has stepped down from being co-editor, the magazine can return to it's previous amusing, informative and interesting self!

To read my 'Right of Reply'  click here
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Spice Girl Nicola

3/4/2015

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Interesting telly last night that deserves some comment!  The Scottish lady in red provided the electorate with some new recipe suggestions and spiced up the debate at the TV Election Leadership Hustings.


NICOLA STURGEON

Scottish National
Party Leader  


(
The Scottish Govt OGL (http://www.national archives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/1/)],via Wikimedia)

The polls have declared different winners and the big political parties are each claiming their speakers were the best, but clearly there is a really huge wave of support by the public for Nicola Sturgeon of the Scottish National Party.   Even though she may well spell a huge change for the future of the UK.

I don't think it is an exaggeration to say that a lot of people seem dissatisfied with the current parliamentary set up and to me the main party leaders trotted out the same old stuff at this televised hustings. UKIP and the Green Party leaders performed as expected too.

Nicola spoke like a sensible gust of fresh air on more than one subject and also came out with the words that many people throughout the whole of the UK have been thinking. Here are a couple of examples: 

'I know it's not just people in Scotland who feel let down by Westminster politics' 

.
.. and...

'I think we've seen tonight from this discussion why we really need to break the old boys' network at Westminster because, frankly, none of these guys can be trusted when it comes to tuition fees.'


But speaking personally,  I felt the debate was a flawed contest. 

Why?   Firstly, because two of the speakers are not actually standing as MPs in the UK General Election on May 7th. In fact it will be other members of their parties who will be standing such as Alec Salmond for the Scottish National Party and not Nicola Sturgeon herself.  Leanne Wood for Plaid Cymru is another such 'leader'. 

Secondly, this debate was meant to help people understand what the parties with seats represent, but only some very basic soundbites were spoken and where were the speakers for the Northern Irish Parties?  

Lastly, there was no real discussion on the really important point of how the leaders will deal with a 'hung  Parliament' and make it work after the election. (The newspaper pundits currently predict the chance of this at around 90% now).

So how could it work? It is predicted in some polls today that the Scottish National Party will have 48 seats and the Northern Irish parties will retain the 18 seats they already hold. The Lib Dems are predicted to retain only 16 seats, UKIP, The Green Party, SDLP and others around half a dozen or so and lastly Plaid Cymru 3 seats, this means a large total in excess of 90 seats/votes that do not belong to either of the two big parties. It is these votes which will have the most potential to be horse traded to ensure a majority vote when needed by the winner of the election!

What does this mean for the future? 
    Possibly this is the start of change that will see politics opening up, to become more task driven and with much more decision making at a local level.  

An Independent MP candidate, Simon Killane, who I am currently supporting to be the next MP for North Wiltshire, understands this. His attitude is of collaboration and working together to find a way forward to sort out the big issues, instead of using them as fodder for party political infighting. He has a successful track record of working this way already as a Wiltshire Councillor.

But ultimately it could be more than that - it also seems likely that devolution of the UK itself may be the price paid for the big parties to retain their political power in London.  Only time will tell, so vote wisely!



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Hustings and Making Your Mind Up

1/4/2015

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Unlike Eurovision and Bucks Fizz...  it is a bit more complicated making your mind up who to support to win the General election.  How can this be judged and who will receive 'null points'? 

Well instead of Eurovision we can tune in tomorrow night for two hours of live Election Leadership Debate on ITV and the contestants are:
NOT Bucks Fizz...  but

David Cameron (Conservative), Ed Miliband (Labour), Nick Clegg (Lib Dems), Nigel Farage (Ukip), Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party), Leanne Wood (Plaid Cymru) and Natalie Bennett  (
Green Party).

Will this  influence  people to decide which way they will vote? The 'leaders' of the main parties will be talking about their policies and debate questions put to them by members of the public, so we will probably see performances of a lifetime from most in this digital Hustings.

Can there be be any outright winners in Parliament? Doesn't look like that at the moment. In fact, whichever party does gain the most seats, it's likely they will still have to buddy up with others to have a big enough combined majority in the House of Commons.  Is it right for parties to ally themselves with others, where their policies and 'philosophy' are quite different?  Also, i
s it right to 'horse trade' with others simply to be the majority party in power?  (Remember this question and look for the answer, if you watch the telly debate).












Anyway, the really important question people ask is how will all of this personally affect ME?  That is - What will the bargaining at political level really mean for me, my family and my life.  Again, this is d
ifficult to decide, as every day seemingly new potential tax cut and various benefits and policies are announced by the big parties, although often without the explanation of how they will be paid for. 

The culture of party politics is such that members most often have to vote the way they are told to by their parties. They often have to toe a party line regardless of what they or their constituents may feel about really important issues (that is if constituents are actually even asked).

It's time for a change! We have the internet and people can see what goes on for themselves now and won't be taken in by old fashioned power games.

I have decided that for me, the best way to make the decision of who to vote for will be to find out about my local candidates and see what they will do for me and mine. Our present Wiltshire Councillor, Simon Killane has the best track record in my view and you can read all about it on his website www.thepeoplesmp.com

Lastly, I will be booking my place at my local Hustings, so I can watch and listen to what they are saying in the flesh and also to let their record speak for them. That's how I will be Making My Mind Up!

Local Hustings are:
14th April  Cricklade 
23rd April
  Calne
24th April  Malmesbury Abbey

         

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Burnham House Will Have Local Staff 

25/2/2015

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Abbeyfield gave a really interesting presentation to the Town Council last night, on the development of Burnham House. (Many will remember this development from our Neighbourhood Plan). Abbeyfield are well known for their homes for older folk, all over the country and even abroad and they will be running this new facility. So the question I asked was "Will local people be employed here?" and the answer was Yes!   Anticipated start date for recruiting Staff will be around June 2016, with completion of the building works approx. October 2016. 
So not only 49 fantastic extra care apartments, but new jobs as well!

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We also saw a street scene drawing of how the finished frontage will look and heard about the type of facilities which will be available for residents of these independent living care apartments. (By the way, Abbeyfield are now  aware of the busy car parking situation in Burnham Rd).

Mainly 2 bed apartments, some will be for sale, but the majority will be for affordable let for those aged 55 years and over. In addition to the apartments, there will be a communal eating place/ restaurant and a large lounge type space, a hair salon, a crafts and other activities room, a spiritual and well being room, laundry and also an outside facility being a kind of shed, where men and yes also women can go to fix and build things and generally do shed type pottering. Not forgetting to mention a communal garden, where residents can tend the garden themselves if they wish.

It was estimated that the start date for clearing the site and starting to build will be around this May 2015.

Click on this link for further details about the Burnham House
development.
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    I am a mum, wife, daughter and
    Town Councillor with a passion for Malmesbury.


    Disclaimer      Please note these are my personal thoughts and opinions on this blog and website and they are not expressed in my capacity as a Councillor or on behalf of the Town Council.

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