Agenda item

To receive details of a planning appeal received for Land East Of Witney Road,, Ducklington - 21/03405/OUT

The Committee received details of a planning appeal for Land East of Witney Road, Ducklington - 21/03405/OUT.

Members welcomed the opportunity from the Planning Inspectorate to add further representation to the Town Council’s objections and agreed that as these were still valid and pressing concerns, they should be reinforced with the following addition.

Resolved:

That, Witney Town Council value the open green space and echo the concerns of Ducklington Parish Council. The current open space provides a natural separation between Witney and Ducklington and in accordance with the general principles of West Oxfordshire District Council Local Plan 2031, Policy OS2, All development should avoid the coalescence and loss of identity of separate settlements. Further, in terms of the local landscape, the site, which neighbours the Lake & Country Park, makes a valued and important contribution of greenspace to residents of Ducklington and Witney – OS2 requires that all development should NOT involve the loss of an area of open space or any other feature that makes an important contribution to the character or appearance of the area.

The moor is an established wildlife habitat providing a large natural catchment for excesses of surface water, if any flood mitigation measures fail, Colwell Brook and Emma’s Dyke could be overwhelmed with sewage water. The Witney sewage treatment facility and current sewer network is not able to cope with the existing demand and Witney continues to see untreated sewage pumped into the River Windrush and Witney’s watercourses. Approval of this application would see an additional 120 homes feeding into the existing poor network, without any commitment to sewage system upgrades. Any new development is under threat of it being flooded with sewage water from Colwell Brook and Emma's Dyke.