The ‘van with a plan’ hits the street – have your say on our Local Plan Options session | Newsroom

People are being inspired to look out for ‘the van with a plan’ when it stops off at greater than 50 places over the approaching weeks as a part of a major public session on progress plans, which may reshape Bath & North East Somerset over the subsequent 20 years.

Locations various from excessive streets, backyard centres and Bath metropolis centre places to pub automobile parks, schools and industrial estates are on the van’s route- all in a bid to lift consciousness of the council’s session and to present everybody an opportunity to have their say.       

The Local Plan Options consultation focuses on new housing, transport, enterprise house, infrastructure and public areas. It began on October 3 and runs till 14 November. 

The Local Plan Options report responds to the federal government’s new housing targets and the expansion agenda with detailed choices that would form higher locations and create extra jobs for the long run.

Having consulted final 12 months on an earlier formidable goal of 14,000 new properties over twenty years the council has reset its Local Plan Options after the federal government doubled the goal to 27,000 over eighteen years.

Councillor Matt McCabe, Cabinet Member for Built Environment, Housing and Sustainable Development, mentioned: “We all know there is an overwhelming need for more affordable housing locally. Across B&NES, the average house price is around twelve times the average workplace earnings and in Bath it is nineteen. The housing affordability crisis not only affects people’s quality of life; it directly impacts the local economy.

“We also know we need to create sustainable communities, protect the district’s unique character and address the climate and ecological emergency. It is a challenge we all need to recognise and so the consultation on options that are being put forward is a vital first step to getting your views.

“We are sending a ‘van with a plan’ out and about so please look out for events in your area as well as information on our website and the council’s social media channels. We want to create as many opportunities both online and in person as possible for you to have your say.” 

Advice packs for city and parishes councils have been shared to run their very own occasions along with the council’s Parish Liaison assembly which is on 15 October the place the Local Plan Options report can be mentioned.

The Local Plan Options report outlines how locations may change over the subsequent 20 years to supply extra of the best properties in the best locations and allow financial progress. The report units out how progress may very well be deliberate for, to create sustainable communities, shield the district’s distinctive character and handle the local weather and ecological emergency.

When lastly agreed, the statutory Local Plan will information improvement and land use throughout Bath and North East Somerset till 2043, with adoption scheduled for summer time 2027.

By having a Local Plan, the council can higher facilitate deliberate high-quality improvement and infrastructure provision. It can shield what makes B&NES particular, together with its famend constructed and pure environments, whereas guiding future sustainable progress. Without a Local Plan, speculative improvement will happen, in much less sustainable areas and in an unplanned method, with insufficient infrastructure assist.

Options embrace new properties and services in Keynsham and Saltford Village; progress within the Somer Valley supported by main transport enhancements; mixed-use improvement in central Bath; reuse of brownfield and underused websites; and a extra versatile method to village progress the place it helps providers and sustainability.

The choices put ahead additionally increase the delicate however necessary query of whether or not land to the west of Bath may very well be introduced ahead to ship much-needed properties, assist jobs and unlock funding. Any improvement right here would want to exhibit distinctive design high quality, panorama sensitivity and clear public profit. It could be topic to rigorous heritage and environmental evaluation.

Please additionally look out for our proposed Movement Strategy which is geared toward bettering journey decisions. A session on the technique runs from Tuesday 14 October to Friday 28 November.

The reports to cabinet about each might be discovered on the web site and the choice assembly on September 25 might be considered on the council’s YouTube channel.