Backlash to plans for 100 houses in Dilton Marsh

PLANS to build 100 houses on land south of Clivey in Dilton Marsh, known locally as the deer field, have been met with concerns from residents who want the field to remain undeveloped.

Residents had previously raised concerns that the application would change the character of the village permanently, and that the field in question is home to deer, bats, owls, and other wildlife.

An outline planning application has now been submitted by Pegasus Group on behalf of Rosconn Strategic Land, and it can be commented on by searching PL/2023/01048 on Wiltshire Council’s planning portal. The deadline for comments is Friday 17th March.

Dilton Marsh Parish Council is set to discuss the plans at a meeting at the Memorial Hall on Thursday 16th March at 7.30pm, and it is hoped that the applicant’s agent will be in attendance to answer questions and take comments.

Concerned residents have banded together to hire an experienced planning consultant to help them fight the application. They are asking for donations to fund their defence.

Similar plans are often approved by Wiltshire Council as the unitary authority has continually failed to find a five-year housing land supply, which is used to meet government housing targets. As a result, local councils may start to lose control over where new homes are built.

Resident, Natasha Wildman, says “Local groups and communities have fundraised and donated their own money in order to engage the help of planning consultants to make their voices heard, only to be ignored and find decisions undermined and overturned by the inspectorate, who highlight the fundamental shortcomings in our local planning system.

“Our communities and our natural environment are being saddled with unattractive, unwanted, and disputably unrequired numbers of new developments without the necessary supporting infrastructure. This has a detrimental effect for existing residents, whether in the town of Westbury or surrounding areas.  Any ‘amenities’ included in plans appear to be for the benefit of the appeal to new residents i.e. a children’s play area.

“The Local Plan has not yet been updated, but it is noted that local residents who engaged with this were against relatively large numbers of new homes and felt that the town of Westbury could not support further development as there was limited (if any) evidence of developments in infrastructure. As of yet, there is no firm plan for a bypass and the economy has yet to prove that it is robust enough to support large numbers of new residents and yet it continues.

“We are being ‘played’ by the developers who have the arrogance and complacency to declare open season on Wiltshire and have done for some time. This must not continue.”

To view the plans in full visit: https://www.landatclivey.co.uk

If you would like to stay up to date with the residents’ group opposed to the plans, you can join their group on Facebook by searching Save Our Green Fields! To donate to the campaign visit: https://bit.ly/3YS3GWX