12-year plan for 30,000 homes 'mostly' in Aylesbury approved by council

Yesterday evening (15 September), Bucks Council approved plans to build 30,000 more homes, most of them will be in Aylesbury.

The Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan (VALP) was voted through in a full cabinet meeting last night.

The plan extends all the way through to 2033, the council says it sets out how and where land can be used to:

-meet housing need

-provide key infrastructure elements

-protect and enhance the area’s key natural features

-incorporate climate control policies

-provide employment land

In total, over the 12 years land has been allocated to accommodate the construction of 30,134 new homes.

While 'mostly concentrated on Aylesbury', houses will also be built in Buckingham, Winslow, Haddenham and adjacent to Milton Keynes.

A council spokesperson said: "The plan has gone through rigorous public consultation over a number of years including public hearings held before the independent planning Inspector.

"The independent Inspector cannot approve a local plan unless it meets current and projected local housing needs and falls within current government guidelines for determining what that local need is."

Within the plan is analysis of where roads, schools and facilities would need to be built to support the influx of new housing.

The council spokesperson added: "The VALP sets out policies to protect and enhance the natural environment and countryside for the future. It includes a net increase to the Green Belt by 98 hectares. It also embeds policies to protect our built heritage."

The Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan will remain in force until it is superseded by the new Buckinghamshire Local Plan in 2025.

A council spokesperson said: "There are many specific policies relating to climate change – including making sure there is provision for EV charging in every new home."

Work began on this plan back in 2014 and went through three stages of public consultation before it went to a nationally appointed independent Inspector in 2018.

There were then two hearing sessions where people who objected to the plan could make their case for changes to the plan directly to the independent Inspector. The Inspector also looked closely at all the evidence sent to him by objectors and the Council before writing his full report. His report is final and cannot be amended.

Bucks Council deputy leader Gareth Williams said: “Now we have completed the Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan process we can use the policies to give us more control and more local say about what gets built where. It gives us power to shape future development in the way we want and where we want it to be.”