Minutes from the focus group meeting Monday 14th October held 7pm at the Mitre. Present: Lauren Todd and eight of the twelve people who had expressed an interest in forming focus groups. Apologies: Jo Francis and Jeff Chown In the absence of Jo (who was unwell) Lauren opened the meeting expressing concern that a great many people seemed to be under the mistaken impression that the proposed Barratt development is a “done deal” and that we are wasting our time. OUR MESSAGE - PLANNING PERMISSION FOR THIS UNWANTED AND WHOLLY UNNECESSARY DEVELOPMENT HAS NOT YET BEEN GRANTED AND IT CAN BE STOPPED! After some discussion the following topics were identified for further research/action: ROADS: Lauren will oversee a traffic survey at the Wincombe Lane crossroads with Hill Farm/Nettlecombe to be organised next week. Any offers of help on a rota basis will be gratefully received. HERITAGE: David, who is representing the Civic Society, will get in touch with the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England (CPRE), of which he is a member, and English Heritage to explore any possibilities of support. SCHOOLS: Lauren will ask Angela, who has demonstrated good knowledge and obvious interest in this area, to investigate present availability of places/future plans for expansion. EMPLOYMENT: Naomi will contact local businesses to establish the number of vacancies in the area. MEDICAL: Abi will endeavour to get statistics on GP/patient ratio and the official position of the Abbey View Medical Centre. PROPOSED INFRASTRUCTURE: Elaine will search the DCC website to discover what has been proposed but not carried out, particularly in respect of the Persimmon site and any monies that have been made available by that company. Another area of potential problems would appear to be the sewage system which she will investigate as well as any Highways Authority immediate plans. It was generally agreed that everybody needs to familiarise themselves with the latest Government policy on housing development (which Beryl stated had recently changed) and any relevant legislation as well as the planning criteria employed by the district council in giving planning permission. We need to be well informed to be able to speak with any authority at any future public meetings and to send letters* opposing the development. *On this last point, Lauren has received feedback that many people feel unable to put together a coherent letter; it was agreed that we might need to produce a template which individuals could personalise Minute taker; Elaine Barratt
Posted on: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 11:50:25 +0000
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