SODC has a plan for housing. To make this plan consultation was sought and tough decisions were made. And for good reason the land between Didcot and East Hagbourne was deemed unsuitable for housing.

Speculative developers like Grainger and Nurton have a different plan. Their’s is not driven by local requirements, instead its driven by the need to deliver dividends to their shareholders. To do this they employ consultants who are adept at cajoling and harrying local authorities.

The consultant’s main weapon of choice is the National Planning Policy Framework. This policy guidance aims to simplify planning and increase the role of communities in where building takes place. However, in our case and many others, it is being misappropriated and used to undermine Local Plans. The community inclusion of a Local Plan is replaced by insipid ad-hoc developer ’consultations’. Sensible planning decisions are replaced by complex arcane arguments about how to calculate housing shortfall. Robust strategic planning is replaced by litigious ‘Planning by Appeal’.

Is this just an activists rant? No. There’s no less an august body than the National Trust. It is their view that “the Government’s planning policy contains loopholes that allow developers to build housing in the wrong locations, side-stepping sites allocated in Local Plans.” You can read more of what they have to say here.

Despite the shortfall in sense that the National Trust have identified this is no done deal. Shortly SODC we will have their chance to challenge Grainger’s proposals. If they have the will and wit they can play them at their game, and use the NPPF and the 1000’s of pages of policy guidance that supports it to undermine their case and reassert their authority.

It is the community’s job to arm SODC with the will. It is the campaign’s job to arm them with the wit. With a loud voice, and strong argument, we can Save the Green Gap.

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