NOW YOU SEE IT

Now you don't

DON'T TARNISH THE JEWEL IN THE CROWN

The jewel and township

Protect our two market towns

DO NOT LET RUTLAND BE RUINED – STOP ST GEORGE’S BARRACKS (SGB) TOWNSHIP

A future for Rutland should be driven by Rutlanders. NOT the County Council. NOT the MOD.

The MoD with support from Homes England are driving the thinking behind the latest 2018 Draft Local Plan. Rutland County Council (RCC) have been dictated to, by the MoD (Ministry of Defence) and Homes England (Central Govt Agency), resulting in a change to the 2017 Draft Local Plan which now includes a new Township of 2,315 houses under the guise of a ‘Garden village’ or just another car dependent housing estate? Press here for the related BBC article.

A Township (under the ‘Garden Village’ banner) on the St George’s Barracks (SGB) site, would engulf neighbouring villages and roads.

The 2017 Draft Local Plan is the one we were all consulted on and did NOT include any large-scale housing estate development for the next 20 years and still met the Objectively Assessed Need (OAN) for homes.

BUT the MoD have other ideas!

They are closing SGB and the MoD want to sell the land for one large housing development (and set up a neighbouring large-scale quarry) to boost their coffers and offset the costs of de-commissioning the base.

It’s not too late to change!

  • A £29.4m Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) grant, that helps solve the MoD's headache, with over half (£16m) earmarked for de-contamination of the Military base.
  • Not much left over for the 'Infrastructure first' promised and road changes to support the significant extra traffic and congestion
  • Financial risk for the County Council - the risk of budget 'over-runs' could impact the funding of those areas that need it most -Children services, Social Care
  • County Councillors are narrowly split, with all independently minded Councillors opposing the addition of a Township to the Local Plan.
  • Many Parish Councils also strongly opposed the Township when consulted - over 2 years ago!
  • But still RCC Cabinet seem hell-bent on trying to push the Township through and despite the financial risks, despite public opposition and despite the Council having not yet agreed the terms of the £29m HIF grant, on which the whole economics of their proposed Township plan depend

A Walk on the South Shore

A short video with Julia Bradbury showing why Rutland is such a special place.

Keep informed via email