Revised plans for Bratton Road housing scheme following bat concerns

Updated plans have been submitted for a controversial 41-home development on the edge of Westbury, in response to concerns about rare bat populations at the site.

The site, on the northern side of Bratton Road, has long been eyed for potential development, but previous proposals have been rejected by Wiltshire Council.

Revised plans were submitted in 2025, but Wiltshire Council’s ecology team placed a holding objection on the development in June this year, stating that potential effects on a rare bat population were not adequately addressed. New plans submitted in August 2026 reveal that the developers have reworked the site’s layout to feature a realigned road network and widened an ecological buffer designed to satisfy council concerns.

Following a survey in July 2026, the developer’s ecologists conceded that a maternity roost of rare Barbastelle bats is likely located in the site’s western hedgerow. The report said, “Seventeen bat species or species groups were recorded at high confidence.”

To protect this critical commuting and foraging corridor, the newly submitted masterplan officially incorporates a 15-metre buffer along the western boundary, “to ensure sufficient area for the existing bat corridor.”

The new plans also introduce a central ‘spine road’, designed to act as the primary vehicular access route for a future housing phase to the north, currently under the control of Barratt Homes.

Housing plans for the site over the years have drawn fierce objections from local residents, town councillors and MP Andrew Murrison, who raised concerns over traffic safety, strain on local doctors’ surgeries and potential visual damage to the historic Westbury White Horse landscape.

If approved, the Bratton Road estate will feature public open space and a mix of detached, semi-detached and terraced houses, including 12 ‘affordable’ homes out of the 41 total, which will be a blend of shared ownership and rented units.

A decision on the revised plans will be made by Wiltshire Council.