Harborough District Council has published its long awaited development plan which sets out the number of houses to be built across the district during the next 15 years. The figure for Scraptoft, Thurnby and Bushby is 350. Since this is a strategic document no detailed locations for development are given at this stage. These will be set out in the Allocations Document which is expected in 2011. Other key proposals for our area include retaining the two Green Wedges between Thurnby, Stoughton and Scraptoft and Leicester City, and the Area of Separation between Scraptoft and Thurnby.

A public consultation is taking place between 15th October and 23rd December after which the plan will be submitted to the Planning Inspectorate who will hold a Public Inquiry prior to it being formally adopted. Elsewhere in the District the plan proposes 1,200 houses at Market Harborough, 500 at Lutterworth, 300 at Broughton Astley and 376 in other smaller villages which have some local facilities such as a shop, school, doctor’s surgery, pub and community facilities.Last year the Council put forward various options on housing figures which ranged from 550 to 2,400 in Scraptoft, Thurnby and Bushby. It also asked if the Green Wedges and Separation Area should be retained. More people from our area responded to the consultation than from any other part of the District and the overwhelming message was that they wanted to protect important green areas and keep the housing figure as low as possible. Your district councillors have supported these views in numerous meetings at the Council by highlighting the pressure on local services and infrastructure such as GP access and the local road network. Now is your chance to tell the Council what you think of the current proposals.

The Core Strategy consultation documents can be accessed online by following this link: http://www.harborough.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=856&documentID=216

Comments should be made on the form which can be downloaded from this link and there is a helpful guide called ‘Making your Representation to the Core Strategy’ on the same web page. If you do not wish to use the online facility the Council will accept written comments but you should follow the format suggested in the guide to enable all responses to be incorporated into one document for the Planning Inspector to examine at the Public Enquiry. If you want to respond but have difficulty following the instructions prescribed by the Planning Inspectorate in the guide please contact one of your District Councillors (see below) or come along to the Thurnby and Bushby Parish Council Information Centre (PCIC)  off Grange Lane, Thurnby  between 9.30 and 11.30am on Wednesday mornings where all the documents can be seen in paper form.  Cllr Amanda Burrell (who runs the PCIC) will be on hand to offer assistance.  Cllr Simon Galton – telelphone 0116 2432211Cllr Amanda Burrell – telephone 0116 2416207

Cllr Jan Tooley – telephone 0116 2714726