Page last updated at 15:05 GMT, Wednesday, August 1 2012

Council agrees local plan

Eastleigh Borough Councillors last night agreed the latest version of the Borough’s Local Plan. Full Council agreed the pre-submission version of the Local Plan which was the last stage in producing the plan before it is submitted to the Secretary of State for examination.   

The Local Plan sets out the Council’s policies on how land in the Borough can be used right through to 2029 and will provide the basis for future planning decisions.  Comments from over 1200 people, mostly local residents, have been considered during various stages of consultation over the last year, before the pre-submission version was produced.

Key features of the latest version of the plan are:

• Gaps between towns and villages have been preserved
• Sites have been identified to meet the need for new homes in three main sites and a number of smaller ones
• The plan allows space for building new schools, sports and leisure and community facilities 

The proposed Strategic Development Area to the north of Hedge End, which would have seen over 6000 homes built, has been scrapped and is not included in the plan.

The plan also includes an assessment of the transport needs of the Borough for the next seventeen years, including a proposed Botley by-pass, although the plan now says that developments in the Botley area are not dependent on the new road.

People will have a final chance to make comments on the soundness of the Local Plan – which means whether the proposed development sites and policies are justified, effective and consistent with national planning policy. After this, the Plan and any objections which can’t be resolved will be presented to the inspector.

Councillor Keith House, Council Leader said:

“I am confident that we have agreed a very sound plan that both protects important open space and the character of our towns and villages and allows for the future development that will ensure the borough prospers. I’d like to thank all the people who have commented on the plan and helped us develop it.”

The final consultation on the pre-submission version begins on 17 August and will be available on the Council’s website, at the Council’s offices, town and parish council offices and all local public libraries.  Comments should be sent to the Planning Policy Team at Eastleigh Borough Council, Civic Offices, Leigh Road, Eastleigh, SO50 9YN by 12 October 2012.