Council seeking to finalise Local Plan

Royal Borough: Blueprint will decide building of homes

A public consultation is now open as the Royal Borough attempts to finalise changes to the long-awaited Borough Local Plan (BLP).

The planning blueprint will decide where thousands of homes can be built across the borough.

The local authority is aiming to provide 14,240 new properties by 2033 including at controversial sites such as land at Maidenhead Golf Club.

In March, the Governmentappointed inspector Louise Phillips released her stage two post-hearing letter outlining what changes need to be done to the plan before it undergoes another public consultation.

These changes include reinstating

the following three sites for future housing:

Osbornes Garage, St Mark’s Road, Maidenhead

Gas holder site, Bridge Road, Sunninghill

Land adjacent to Coppermill Road, Horton

The council said it has also reduced the number of homes proposed on three small sites and removed a suggested site for housing at Englemere Lodge, Ascot.

Councillor David Coppinger, cabinet member for planning and environmental services, said: “This will give us and every resident certainty going forward and will give us plans to provide the housing of all types and all tenures that we need for our population going forward.

“It’s one of the most important things I’ve ever been involved with and it is for the council because it sets a direction for the future.”

He added: “What matters now is for all our residents to comment, that will go back to the inspector who will make the final decisions on the plan before it comes back to the council for us to adopt it.”

The latest consultation on the proposed modifications to the Borough Local Plan will run until Sunday, September 5.

Visit consult.rbwm.gov.uk/ portal for further details.