Marston Valley News

Following a public examination of Central Bedfordshire Council’s (CBC) draft Local Plan this summer, The Planning Inspectorate has provided formal feedback to the council.

CBC received the feedback on 30th September 2019, but delayed publication until 14 October 2019 while it sought to resolve a number of legal issues regarding the content and process being followed.

The Council said that correspondence from third parties referred to by the Inspectors had unusually not been sent to CBC as the Local Planning Authority and the promoter of the Local Plan.

The focused letter raises a limited number of issues for the Council to respond to. In particular clarifying the content of some of the policies for strategic sites and issues around the current Sustainability Appraisal (SA).

The Council’s website says that no issues were raised in relation to a number of key points.

Central Bedfordshire Council’s (CBC) Local Plan is currently at the public hearing stage of its examination. These hearings are to be held over five weeks between 21 May and 26 July 2019. The Marston Valley development was discussed on Hearing Day 7 (13 June 2019).

Lidington homes would leave the village due to Central Bedfordshire Council’s Local Plan.

This was the claim made by the Lidlington Action Group at January’s Full Council Meeting. Lidlington Action Group told Central Bedfordshire Council that people’s homes would leave rural village and be part of a mini Milton Keynes if Local Plan goes ahead.

The Lidlington Action Group (LAG) was represented at Central Bedfordshire Council’s January meeting (17 January 2019).

LAG is opposed to the 5,000 new homes that the Marston Valley development would bring to the village. The group isn’t calling for the whole scheme to be scrapped, only to be reduced in size.

It proposes that a smaller development of 1,800 houses would protect the identity of existing villages and be more sustainable.

The government is consulting on mandating biodiversity net gain in development to ensure habitats are protected and enhanced for the future.

Developers could be required to deliver a ‘biodiversity net gain’ when building new housing or commercial development. Meaning habitats for wildlife must be enhanced and left in a measurably better state than they were pre-development.

The proposed new rules require developers to assess the type of habitat and its condition before submitting plans.

Campaigners are calling for Central Bedfordshire Council (CBC) to take advantage of Milton Keynes Council’s revised development plan.

They say that if Milton Keynes’ bid to build a new road bridge over the M1 is successful, it would release the potential of sites to the west of Cranfield. These, they say, would benefit from public transport links directly into Milton Keynes.

The campaigners believe that this would make more sense than building a huge 5,000 settlement right in the heart of the Community Forest of Marston Vale. An area which would have no direct access onto strategic roads or public transport.

James Brokenshire appoints new Homes England board member

Communities Secretary has appointed Duncan Sutherland to the board of Homes England, as the agency continues role in making the housing market work for everyone

James Brokenshire: “building better and beautiful will deliver more homes” – New commission announced to champion beauty in the built environment

The Communities Secretary, Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP, has launched a commission to champion beautiful buildings as an integral part of the drive to build the homes communities need.

The ‘Building Better, Building Beautiful’ Commission will investigate measures to help ensure new developments meet the needs and expectations of communities. This is to make them more likely to be welcomed rather than resisted.

Petition started to halt the Oxford-Cambridge Expressway and its associated developments

Petitioner claims expressway and a million new homes would be “disastrous”

Elaine Cox created her petition after she read an article claiming that Oxford – Cambridge Corridor decisions would be made behind closed doors.

The Bedford & Milton Keynes Waterway Trust is calling for volunteers from Marston Vale to help to
deliver a waterway linking the Grand Union Canal in Milton Keynes to the Great Ouse in Bedford.

The volunteers would help to shape and promote the waterway.

But is the Trust worried that by taking money from controversial developments, such as the Covanta Energy Recovery Facility, that residents would oppose the waterway?