Bishops Green resident's safety concerns over plans for hundreds of homes in village
A Bishops Green resident has raised the alarm over plans to build up to 400 homes in the village.
Two separate proposals for 350 homes on College Copse Farm and 50 homes on a paddock on the west side of Ecchinswell Road have been lodged – potentially transforming the village for generations to come.
Tony Forward – a Bishops Green resident since 1998 – said the roads into and out of the village were not equipped to cope with the potential influx of cars.
The road that leads into the village from the A339 comes down a winding hill, before crossing a bridge over the River Enborne that narrows into one lane to allow for a footpath.
Mr Forward, who was chairman of Greenham Parish Council from 2007 to 2015, said: “Residents’ over-arching concern is the suitability of the road and consequential safety.
“You’ve only got to look at that five homes development [an approved development just north of the plan for 50 homes], that courted a surprising number of objections because people were concerned about the safety of the road.
“There have been many accidents – about one a year – as you approach the bridge.
“People come whizzing down the hill and then just lose it.”
The road could face difficulty in being widened or having street lighting installed as the area on the west side, known as Bishops Green Heath, forms part of the Greenham and Crookham Commons Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
Additionally, as the hill and bridge are in West Berkshire, with cars only entering Basingstoke and Deane once they’ve crossed the river, it is unclear who would pay for improvements to the road.
Mr Forward said the dual developments, if approved, would have a knock-on effect to all the surrounding parishes, as the traffic would be either heading north towards Newbury or Thatcham, or potentially down the Newtown straight to the A34.
He also expressed his frustration with national planning policy, with residents unable to object to developments on the grounds of loss of view or reduction in property value.
He said: “It seems completely bonkers that our planning process does not allow a resident to complain about a loss of view or loss of value.
“If, for example, a farmer sells his field – which you back on to – to a developer, and you’ve got a marvellous view across the field, if you complain you’re going to lose that view and your property is going to lose value, neither is a material consideration for planners.
“However, the developer will inevitably make a huge gain out of your loss.
“That’s denying the public from saying what really matters to them, and in my view planning policy should be changed.”
The applications have been submitted as developers seek to take advantage of Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s lack of a five-year housing land supply.
The council is only currently able to demonstrate a 4.5 year supply, which means under the National Policy Planning Framework there is a “presumption in favour of sustainable development”, even if applications are outside established settlement boundaries.
