BEARLEY has yet again said “no” to plans for a proposed new town of at least 6,700 homes near Stratford.
A protest took place at Cade Hill on Saturday (September 20) which saw residents assemble in front of farmland that would be turned over to houses if a “massive” development earmarked for land between Wilmcote, Pathlow and Bearley is given the go-ahead.
It is one of several potential options laid out in the South Warwickshire Local Plan, being drawn up by both Stratford and Warwick district councils, to increase housing in the area.
Just over 120 people joined the protest from Bearley, Wilmcote and surrounding villages. They held up placards saying ‘Ban the Plan’.
This is the third time Bearley has said ‘no’ to the so-called ‘BW New Town’. The first was when hundreds of people turned up at the village Hall in January. The second was in March when over 1,000 people replied ‘no’ to the Bearley Wilmcote plan in the SWLP consultation – many more people opposing this part of the plan than any of the other areas affected.
Guy Esnouf who chairs the Bearley opposition said: “The people of Bearley and Wilmcote still haven’t been told how many houses the councils want to build here. The original proposal was 6,800, but since then even more land has been made available, so the figure could now be up to 10,000. We call on the councils to come clean on what their plans are.
‘The Bearley Wilmcote plan would create a massive housing estate on the northern edge of Stratford. It would mean permanent gridlock on the Birmingham Road and beyond, it would destroy the greenbelt for no reason, do serious damage to the town of Stratford itself, and harm precious wildlife. The Bearley Wilmcote plan goes against the advice of the councils’ own advisors and consultants, and ignores the realities of the area. The only people that benefit would be the developers and their shareholders.
‘The people of Bearley call for the councils to do the right thing and Ban the Plan’ as soon as possible.’
A SDC spokesperson said that not all the proposed locations will ultimately be needed to meet the area’s needs and the councils would be undertaking further analysis to conclude which locations should form part of south Warwickshire’s growth strategy.
Visit www.southwarwickshire.org.uk/swlp for further details.
