Speaking out on housing plans

Last Monday plans for 2,600 homes at Yate and Chipping Sodbury and 1,800 at Coalpit Heath were discussed by the West of England Joint Committee in Bath. Local councillors Claire Young and Pat Hockey attended, with Claire speaking out on the plans. Despite the concerns raised, and despite both the Leader of North Somerset and the Mayor of Bristol saying they hadn't had time to read the document, the West of England leaders voted to recommend the Joint Spatial Plan (JSP) to the four councils.

The BBC asked if anyone would be available for filming the next day in Coalpit Heath. They were expecting one or two people and were astonished by the crowd that turned out at such short notice. They were left in no doubt about the level of concern and while they were there also filmed the danger signs around the old mine shaft that has been fenced off in the corner of the field.

The Joint Spatial Plan will be considered by the South Glos Cabinet at 2pm today and then by all councillors at a meeting at 7pm on Wednesday 8th November in Kingswood Civic Centre. Members of the public are welcome to attend.

If South Glos and the other three councils all approve the JSP for consultation, you will be able to have your say from 22nd November to 10th January. We'll give you more information on how to do this when the consultation starts. 

Draft Joint Spatial Plan published

The latest Draft Joint Spatial Plan has been published. You can read it here (all 337 pages...)

The JSP looks at housing and employment needs up to 2036 (the "plan period"), but makes predictions of need and provision beyond that.

It's being discussed at various West of England Combined Authority meetings and will next go to the 4 member councils. Subject to them all agreeing, it will go out to public consultation.

The plans include:

• 1,800 new homes at Coalpit Heath, all within the plan period
• 1,000 homes plus employment land within the plan period on the edge of Yate, at Engine Common, Nibley and down to Westerleigh, plus another 225 homes as a "contingency", and 1000 homes after the plan period
• 1,200 at Charfield, all within the plan period
• 1,500 at a new garden village at Buckover, plus another 1500 afterwards
• 500 at Thornbury, all within the plan period
• "Contingencies" of up to 775 homes south of Chipping Sodbury within the plan period, plus another 725 afterwards

We will keep you updated and will let you know how to have your say when the consultation starts.

Update 1st November 2017 - South Glos say "In the first half of November, the JSP and proposed engagement plan will be considered by each of the four WoE local authorities. Only once it is approved can it proceed. Subject to approval by the four councils, the proposed public engagement is due to run from 22 November until 10 January, 2018. Following this process, the draft plan, along with all of the feedback received will be sent to the Secretary of State early next year"

Plans from housing drop-in sessions now available online

Cllr Claire Young at the Yate and Chipping Sodbury drop-in

Now that the drop-in events on the new housing proposals have come to an end, you can see all the materials used at them here.

The proposals for the Yate/Sodbury area include housing coming round from north of the football club down towards the top of Nibley, employment to the west of the current business parks along Nibley Lane and then mixed housing/employment in the land between Nibley Lane and the railway arches. If these and the Coalpit Heath proposals go ahead, there would be very little separating the villages from Yate.


The proposals for Chipping Sodbury are for development areas on the south side of the railway, running from opposite the middle of Robin Way to south of Smarts Green roundabout. This means both sides of Dodington Road / Claypit Hill except the Chipping Sodbury School playing field, as far south as the Dodington Lane junction.

The submission draft of the Joint Structure Plan will be going to an extraordinary meeting of the West of England Infrastructure Advisory Board in Bristol on 25th, and the next meeting of the West of England Combined Authority will be 2pm on 30th October at the Bath Guildhall. Papers for that will be available on 20th October. It will then be coming to the South Gloucestershire Cabinet on 6th November and full council on 8th November.

Over the winter there will be a consultation and all submissions will be sent with the submission draft to the Secretary of State. The plan will then be tested at an Inquiry.