WINSLOW TOWN COUNCIL 28 High Street, Winslow, , MK18 3HF

CLERK TO THE COUNCIL Tel: 01296 712448 Mr C Loch - Clerk e-mail: [email protected] Dr S Carolan - Deputy Clerk

David Broadley Senior Planning Officer (Forward Plans) Vale District Council

21st August 2019

Dear David

Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan - WIN020

Winslow Town Council is extremely concerned about the unexpected change to the designation of land to the north of Road, and specifically the WIN020 site (and the adjacent land lying to the west of Great Horwood Road) detailed in the proposed Modified VALP. It has also considered the exchange of correspondence between Cllr van de Poll and yourself on this matter.

You are aware from submissions made to the earlier VALP Inquiry that WTC considers that it is not the role of VALP to allocate specific sites for development in areas with an adopted neighbourhood plan, and this equally applies to any proposals to change allocations already made in approved and adopted neighbourhood plans. Consequently, if AVDC considers the current allocation in WNP to be inappropriate (despite approving it less than five years ago), then it is for AVDC to make this point to the Town Council when WTC next updates the WNP. A conversation between WTC and AVDC about this updating has already begun, and WTC is currently awaiting AVDC’s response to WTC’s initial thoughts for an update of WNP sent to Alan Bennett last month.

The WIN020 site referenced in the proposed revision to VALP is within land allocated in the Winslow Neighbourhood Plan for the creation of a sports hub and for a business park under “WNP Policy 7: land north of Buckingham Road” and “Policy 13: Sports facilities”. These two developments are symbiotic proposals from the County Council as land owner, as the business park element will also create shared use access and parking spaces that will support the sports hub outside normal business hours. Over the past 40 years the population of Winslow has nearly doubled, but during this time the number of jobs in the town has reduced appreciably. This is because the Local Plans failed to allocate land for employment within the parish, and the only employment site in the town has seen the number of jobs it provides slump by more than 250 to the current figure of only a few dozen. As a result the town has become a significant exporter of labour to the wider labour market in a way that is contrary to the essential principles of sustainability. WTC therefore strongly resists the allocation of WIN020 to elderly persons’ residences rather than a business park because this would significantly undermine one of the main aims of the WNP - to significantly improve the sustainability of our community during the plan period.

WTC believes that there is a very reasonable prospect within the Plan period for development of the business park as proposed in WNP. It will be an increasingly attractive development opportunity, given its proximity to the new Winslow railway station which will be of benefit for both some employees of and visitors to businesses in that location. Accordingly WTC disputes AVDC’s view that the allocation in the current WNP should be rescinded.

Furthermore WTC can see no good planning justification for the allocation of a site on the very edge of Winslow for housing for the elderly. Residents in such accommodation particularly need easy pedestrian access to local retail, health and other services - and to allocate land for such a development on a site which is far from the centre of the town is not good planning.

WTC believes that Winslow itself already has good provision of accommodation for the elderly, both with and without on-site care facilities. The existing provision is also expected to be boosted by the proposals from the County Council to develop a 60 bed extra-care residential facility as part of its redevelopment of the Winslow Centre site (referenced under “Policy 12: Winslow Medical Services Centre” in WNP). This will benefit from being adjacent to a relocated Doctors’ surgery and medical centre, as well as the town’s library, on the same site. They will also be reasonably close to town centre retail and other facilities. The proposed relocation of the health centre from its existing location on Avenue Road (to the old Winslow Centre site) provides a further site at the corner of High Street and Avenue Road which WTC is anticipating allocating for about 20 more units of retirement accommodation in its forthcoming updated WNP. WTC believes that these developments will provide sufficient additional accommodation in Winslow to meet the demand from the elderly in Winslow and its surrounding area, and we can see nothing in the VALP documents to suggest otherwise.

WTC notes that many other sites have been identified as potentially suitable for additional elderly persons’ accommodation in ED212A, and it believes that there may be a much better location for additional elderly persons’ accommodation in the centre of Buckingham, where a site previously earmarked for residential development (BUC051) has been dropped because of traffic issues. Clearly Buckingham Town Council should be consulted about this possibility. For our part WTC believes that the traffic issues for that site would be much reduced if it were to accommodate elderly persons’ accommodation and this may well make that site’s development viable. The site is close to Buckingham’s town centre facilities and therefore would appear to be much more suitable for such accommodation than the WIN020 site.

WTC recognises that at this stage it will have to raise these objections to the proposals for WIN020 formally with the Inspector, but thought it would be helpful to share its thoughts with you at this time, to see whether you believe there is any way of AVDC addressing WTC’s concerns in a mutually beneficial way. It is unclear to WTC what scope remains for AVDC to make changes to this particular aspect of its latest proposals, other than by the Inspector accepting or requiring further changes to be made. WTC is also aware that it may be necessary for the Inspector to convene an additional hearing to consider objections to AVDC’s latest proposals, given their significance and the extent of previously unconsidered options that are now being brought forward. WTC accordingly would appreciate your thoughts on this matter, and how we can work together to achieve a mutually acceptable outcome.

Yours sincerely

Sean Carolan Deputy Clerk