MORE than 60 people took part in a protest march against South Gloucestershire Council’s plans to make green-belt land available for housing.
The demo, organised by pressure group Save Our Green Spaces South Gloucestershire (SOGS-SG), was held between Warmley and Bridgeyate on September 7.
It came ahead of the closure of the latest stage of a consultation on the council’s Local Plan, a 15-year blueprint for future development.
The council’s revised proposals are for 22,241 homes to be built across the district from 2025 to 2040, including huge developments in Warmley, Siston and Shortwood.
A group of about 60 people took part in the march, which was held as a new petition against the proposals was launched on the change.org website.
Among those taking part was Jill Barnes, from Mangotsfield, who said: “There was a great spirit and camaraderie on the march, with more than 60 people taking part.
“We had lots of beeps from passing motorists. We were led by 95-year-old John Lawrence, who was born near Siston Common.”
The group’s petition can be found online at tinyurl.com/6we5xsf9 and volunteers will also be out collecting signatures around the area in the coming weeks.
An update to the Local Plan unveiled in the summer added 17 new sites, with a total of 1,751 homes, to the previous draft published last November.
The latest public consultation ended on September 13. Once the feedback has been processed, a final version of the Local Plan will be prepared and consulted on again next January. It is expected to be submitted next June for examination by a planning inspector, which is likely to take place in October of that year, with a view to adoption by April 2026.
However the council may have to go back and find sites for more new homes in the light of changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), which underpins the planning system, announced by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner.
The changes could see another 6,000 homes added to the target for South Gloucestershire.