Three-year Local Plan

THE fight to save Kirklees’ only 18-hole public golf course and dozens of other green sites is over as the controversial Local Plan has been given the go-ahead by a Planning Inspector.

Campaigners across the borough have been battling for almost three years to block the council’s housing and industry masterplan from their areas.

But following months of scrutiny of thousands of documents, almost all of them have been given the green light by the inspector.

Among those approved are the council’s bid to allow more than 1,500 homes on what is currently Bradley Park Golf Course, more than 4,000 on green belt land between Mirfield and Ravensthorpe, about 1,500 at the Chidswell site in Dewsbury, and 700 at the Black Cat fireworks site at Crosland Moor.

“This proves that all along our strategy was right, despite what the Examiner had to say, and all the newspapers that were illinformed, and the Tory councillors,” commented the triumphant councillor backing the huge planning project, Clr Peter McBride.

But Keith Waddington, chairman of Bradley Park Golf Course, said he was “absolutely shattered” to hear the decision.

The only high profile site to be deleted from the plan by the inspector is the large industrial units close to Robin Hood’s grave at Cooper Bridge.

Referring to the most fiercely fought campaign by Huddersfield’s golfers, Clr McBride said: “The issue is now settled, that land will be used for what we proposed it for.”

Clr McBride said he was “fairly confident” the option to include a nine-hole course, a driving range and football pitches on the land, would happen.

Clr McBride said getting the seal of approval for the planning blueprint, which sets out space for about 31,000 homes across the