THE consultation for Wiltshire Council's Local Plan review has now ended, with more than 2,500 people responding.

The Local Plan review will "set out a vision for the future of Wiltshire", for the period to 2036 and a framework for addressing housing needs and other economic, social and environmental priorities.

It will be the basis against which planning applications are determined and neighbourhood plans developed.

It is a legally required document containing planning policies and site allocations to deliver the numbers of new homes the Government says Wiltshire must provide in the coming years.

As part of its response to the review, Salisbury City Council voted to oppose calls for a bypass or relief road for the city.

Drawn up by the local planning authority in consultation with the community, the Local Plan provides a platform for local people to shape their future surroundings.

Although it has identified two sites in Britford for development - prompting scores of Journal readers to get in touch with their views - there are no actual plans for housing developments at these sites yet.

However if the sites were agreed as suitable for building new homes in the Local Plan, construction at those locations would become much more likely in future.

The current Local Plan is known as the Wiltshire Core Strategy.

The Government requires every Local Plan to be reviewed at least once every five years.

The Core Strategy was adopted in 2015 and is therefore being reviewed.

The council says it still has many responses to process, so the final figure will "rise significantly above" the 2,500 currently registered.

'Excellent response'

Councillor Toby Sturgis, Cabinet Member for Planning, said: “Our Local Plan review consultation had an excellent response from residents, businesses and organisations such as town and parish councils, and I’d like to thank them all for taking the time to share their views in letters, emails and through our online forms.

“Our officers will now review all the responses received and spend some time processing and considering the wealth of differing and passionate views provided by our communities and other stakeholders, before taking the Plan to the next stage and preparing a consultation report for Cabinet.

“The outcomes of this consultation will inform the preparation of the draft Local Plan, which we will then consult on once again, either at the end of this year or early next. It is vitally important that we continue to make progress on the plan, so we have the right supply of sites for new homes in the right places to meet requirements set by Government.

"The Local Plan will help to shape the next 15 years of development in Wiltshire, so it is great that so many people have taken the time to let us know what they think.”

The consultation on the Gypsy and Traveller Development Plan Document also ended on March 9, and the council will now review the responses before another consultation on a draft Plan later this year.

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