COUNCILLORS are concerned that Wellington has not got the necessary services and facilities required to cope with thousands of new homes being built in the area.
Members of Wellington Town Council’s planning committee met on January 6 where they were informed that Gladman Developments Ltd have appealed to the Government-backed Planning Inspectorate in a bid to get the go-ahead to build 315 homes on land at Rockwell Green.
The proposals for the development on land east of Exeter Road also include the building of a convenience store, public open space, landscaping, sustainable drainage system and a vehicle access point.
Gladman Developments had originally submitted plans to Somerset Council in October 2023. But despite holding a public consultation exercise and various discussions and correspondence with planning officers, nothing had been determined by the planning authority and so the developers have gone to the Planning Inspectorate in the hope of getting a positive response.
There was a lot of opposition from members of the public when details of the proposals were first outlined. Wellington Town Council’s planning committee had originally recommended in November 2023 that the 315-home application should be refused because “a further increase in population will cause additional strain on already struggling services.”
That view had not altered among town councillors when they met 14 months later and heard that Gladman were going to appeal in the hope of getting the application approved.
Cllr Steve Mercer, speaking at the town council’s planning committee meeting on January 6, said: “We’ve got seven developments happening at the moment which amounts to between 1,500 and 2,000 new homes.
“These are going to be done in piecemeal and in ten or 15 years time we will suddenly become saturated by new homes. We are in danger of being swamped – we need a strategic plan to cope with this.”
Cllr Andy Govier spoke about the importance of having a Local Plan – although he admitted it was not the easiest of documents to get in place and was a “painful process.”
A Place Plan for Wellington – to inform decisions about the town’s development, regeneration and conservation – was approved by the former Somerset West and Taunton Council in March 2023.
The Place Plan will eventually be incorporated into a Somerset-wide Local Plan being put together by the unitary Somerset Council.
Local Plans are prepared by local planning authorities in consultation with their communities. They set out a vision and framework for the future development of an area.
Once in place, Local Plans become part of the statutory development plan and guide decisions on future development proposals.
Although Cllr Govier said that getting a Local Plan in place was a long-winded process he added: “It is a proper document and without a Local Pan we are at risk.”
He was also concerned that if Gladman did get the go-ahead it could see affordable housing “chopped” from the plans because of the financial feasibility.
A public inquiry into the Gladman application is due to start on March 11 and could last for up to six days.