Cookham Discussion Board

Full Council votes to adopt Borough Local Plan supporting sustainable development until 2033
 

The Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead has tonight voted to formally agree the Borough Local Plan, a key planning document guiding and supporting sustainable growth, regeneration and investment until 2033.
 

The Borough Local Plan provides the vision for the borough’s future development, including setting out how many new homes are needed, how much space for jobs is required, the best locations for new development, and where development cannot happen to protect valued natural and built historic heritage.
 

This final document has been shaped over a decade through a series of public consultations and includes the changes required by independent Planning Inspector Mrs Louise Phillips to make it sound.
 

Full Council’s decision to adopt the Borough Local Plan means it has full weight in deciding planning applications, complementing existing planning documents such as the neighbourhood plans, as well as other council work, plans and decisions.
 

The plan makes provision to deliver at least 14,240 homes to meet projected housing need, as required by Government, aiming to provide for the right amount of high-quality new housing in the right places, including affordable housing, family housing and accessible housing for those with limited mobility.
 

It also seeks to deliver space for employment, retail and other uses, balancing the need for growth in a constrained, high-quality environment with the requirement to protect and enhance the borough’s highly valued assets, character and identity.
 

The plan will ensure that new housing and other development is well designed and supported by suitable infrastructure, including the roads, schools, leisure, parks, open spaces and community facilities we need, as well as saving spaces for nature.
 

While a fraction of green belt development is needed in sustainable locations in order to meet the needs of a fast-growing borough, this still protects 82% of the borough as green belt, with just 1% released for sustainable development.
 

Councillor David Coppinger, cabinet member for planning, environmental services and Maidenhead, said: “Having a new sound and adopted Local Plan put us in a strong position to meet, in a sustainable way, our local housing and employment needs, to capture investment and regeneration opportunities, to guard against unsupported speculative development and protect our valued natural and built historic heritage.
 

“This plan is vital in delivering the council’s future place-making and climate change ambitions, meeting the growing needs and aspirations of the borough by guiding investment, regeneration, jobs and the right mix of homes in the best locations, including new family homes and affordable housing – all supported by required infrastructure improvements.
 

“Its adoption means it has full weight in deciding any planning applications. In bringing forward the largest housing sites, there will also be further engagement with the community through the development of Stakeholder Masterplan Documents, which once finalised will be a material consideration in deciding any subsequent planning applications submitted. 
 

“I would like to thank the thousands of people who have taken part in the public consultations, as well as the council officers and councillors, for their time and consideration in helping to shape this important document.”
 

An FAQ on the Borough Local Plan is available on the council website at www.rbwm.gov.uk/home/planning-and-building-control/planning-policy/emerging-plans-and-policies/draft-borough-local-plan/examination-local-plan
 

The vote was 22 for and 17 against.

Further comment from Paul on result of Council’s Decision on the Borough Local Plan

I’ve been asked by many today about the Local plan decision, so I am submitting this for your information.

I attended the 5-hour event last night. The Plan, as expected, was whipped, and adopted. For Cookham this now means a 17% rise in homes in Cookham Rise, with Lower Mount Farm and Strande Lane allocations removed from the Greenbelt for development and building on the Gasholder site (270 homes in total) with 330 homes at Spencers Farm now also taken out of Greenbelt. There are no infrastructure commitments.

I asked supplementary questions to my submitted and written replies that were published yesterday.

Its best, if interested to listen to the questions and the responses. However, in short:
I asked    in question 1 why Cllr Clark would support the finding that Cookham residents and commuters will be “undeniably frustrated” by the traffic increase. He did not answer that.

I stated in question 2 that I had new evidence that RBWM had not cooperated with Wycombe over Cookham Bridge traffic, and this was a potential legal issue.

Cllr Coppinger stated he did not have information to answer the question.
The Council CEO was asked about this potentially legal issue by a councillor later and he replied that it was a matter for councillors to consider in their vote.

Cllr Brar made a speech against the plan adoption (she voted AGAINST adoption)

Cllr Clarke spoke in favour of plan adoption (he voted FOR adoption)

It is now for all residents to consider the impacts. You will have to decide how to react on building applications that will come forward and indeed if you believe Cllr Clark and the RBWM traffic modelling” not severe” outcome or my analysis and conclusions of their model data.   Whatever, the Inspector still finds the traffic in Cookham will be “undeniably frustrating” as a minimum consequence of the plan as said earlier.

The reality, I believe, is the vote was not made about fact or resident concerns or even pressures from government on what must be built.  The number of new builds across the borough are not required as confirmed by independent government assessment. There are absolutely no guarantees on how many homes will be for families,2,3,4 bed, affordable or social so there is no social balance plan.  The outcome I suggest is about money, plugging holes in the chronic financial management of the past. You may or may not consider that acceptable considering the Greenbelt and traffic impact. There are 6 weeks for submission of a judicial review to The High Court and there are some in the borough moving on this it seems. You will have to decide if you want to support that.

Here is the link to the adoption meeting of last evening  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIz8Cx071uQ
My two questions at 23.54 mins and 40.37 mins
Cllr de Costa and Mr Sharkey restating my legal challenge at 1hr.36
Cllr Brar at 2hrs .20 and Cllr Clark at 4 hrs 0.3               …..Paul Strzelecki