Last chance to comment on Canterbury Local Plan: consultation ends June 3

If you care about the city, the district and its countryside, we urge you to make your opinions known

This weekend is your last chance to have your say on the draft Canterbury Local Plan. CPRE Kent has been reviewing the Plan closely during the consultation period, working with many local community groups and stakeholders throughout, identifying what is good news, what is bad news and what is really bad news for the countryside.

The Good News:

• We strongly support the removal of the unsustainable greenfield site at Cooting Farm (R1).
• We welcome the shorter Plan period and the reduction in further development allocations.
• We’re pleased to see the scrapping of the Canterbury Circulation Plan’s Eastern Movement Corridor, including the associated site allocations at East Canterbury.
• We strongly support the commitment to achieving a minimum 20 per cent biodiversity net gain. This policy needs robust protection from development industry lobbying.
• We like the revised Transport Strategy – its focus on improved bus services is a welcome step.

The Bad News for the Countryside

• The Plan fails to adequately consider exceptional circumstances that might justify a lower housing target.
• It doesn’t address the specific constraints of the district that could limit meeting the Standard Method housing target in full.

• A flawed strategy the with the continued over-expansion of Canterbury, now made worse with the proposed allocation for 2,000 properties at Blean.
• A genuine brownfield-first approach is lacking.
• The Plan allows for development on prime agricultural land.
• There is a lack of ambition regarding genuinely affordable housing.

The Really Bad News for the Countryside

There are several very large housing estates being proposed on some of the best farmland and countryside in this Plan. The worst of these are a potential 2,000 houses north of Canterbury University in Blean and 1,400 houses at Brooklands Farm between Whitstable and Chesterfield.

Make Your Voice Heard!

At this stage in the Local Plan process, it really is important that as many residents as possible comment on the Plan, even if you only have five or 10 minutes to spare. The decisions made a result of this consultation really will be shaping the future of the Canterbury district.

If you care about the Canterbury district and its countryside, we strongly urge you to make your opinions known now if you have not already done so.

The deadline for comments is 5pm on Monday, June 3.

Visit the Canterbury City Council website for more information and to submit your comments: https://news.canterbury.gov.uk/consultations/canterbury-district-local-plan-to-2040/

The full comments CPRE Kent intend to submit can be found here