Agenda item

The Planning Policy Lead Officer, Mr Stimpson, reminded the Committee that the Government required all Local Authorities to have an up to date Local Plan that sets out how many homes they would provide and its approach to permitting new development.

The Issues and Options document outlined what the Council considered to be the key issues and drivers of change that the Review of the Local Plan would address and some Spatial Options which highlighted where development could take place in the future. The document included a Vision for Slough, 14 objectives and an outline of what future policies could be in order to implement the strategy in the emerging plan. A range of sites had been identified for housing development within Slough including expansion of Langley Centre (to include land around the railway station), creation of new residential Neighbourhood on the Akzo Nobel and National Grid sites west of the Uxbridge Road, regeneration of the Canal Basin area, New Cippenham Central Strip and Chalvey regeneration. Development in South Bucks and Windsor and Maidenhead were also viable options.

Whilst welcoming the options being proposed Members enquired about the impact the developments would have on both the transport  and education infra-structure in the town. Mr Stimpson stated that it was recognised that the scale of growth being proposed would add to the congestion and if not properly controlled have an impact upon the quality of the environment. It was noted that the plan would need to address mitigating these affects as far as possible, including introduction of policies which restricted the use of private cars to encourage more people to use public transport. The Committee were informed that the consultation process relating to a revised transport strategy was due to begin shortly. It was noted that investment had been made to the education infrastructure with the opening of two new secondary schools and a third one planned for the near future.

A Member questioned what measures were being taken to halt the decline of the town centre as a shopping centre. It was announced that Abu-Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) had completed a £130 million  purchase of the Queensmere and Observatory Shopping centres.  The redevelopment would bring a mix of retail, leisure and high quality residential living to the centre of Slough.   

It was anticipated that the recent announcement of Heathrow expansion, would create over seventy thousand jobs for the region and whilst the Borough would lose business premises, it was anticipated that there would be no loss of any residential premises.   

Resolved – That details of the Local Plan (2016-2036) issue and Options Consultation Document be noted.