CPRE responds to Hinckley & Bosworth Local Plan

CPRE Leicestershire has submitted a neutral response to the Hinckley & Bosworth Local Plan Regulation 19 consultation, raising concerns about greenfield land

large-scale warehousing and infrastructure.

Local Plans help determine where new homes, employment sites and infrastructure will be developed, making them an important part of how our towns, villages and countryside change over the years ahead.

CPRE Leicestershire has now submitted its response to the Regulation 19 stage of the Hinckley & Bosworth Local Plan.

While our overall position is neutral, and there are important elements of the plan that we support, we believe changes are needed to provide stronger protection for the countryside.

Questioning the need for greenfield development

We strongly support the council’s ambitions for high-quality design, nature recovery and climate resilience.

However, one of our main concerns is the approach to large-scale warehousing and the amount of greenfield land being allocated to accommodate it.

We believe there are inconsistencies within the plan’s figures and that it does not sufficiently demonstrate why certain greenfield sites need to be allocated when the council’s own targets could be met without them.

Of particular concern is land at Cliffe Hill Farm (MARK004).

CPRE Leicestershire is calling for this site to be removed from the plan or placed in reserve. Greenfield land should not be lost where there is insufficient evidence to demonstrate that its development is necessary.

Stronger safeguards for the countryside

Our response also raises concerns about wording within the plan that could potentially allow significant industrial development in the open countryside through a less rigorous approval process than the wider plan requires.

We believe this needs addressing to ensure the protections established through the Local Plan cannot inadvertently be undermined.

Infrastructure is another important part of the picture.

As new homes and businesses are developed, there must be sufficient transport, water capacity and other essential infrastructure to support them. We want to see clear and enforceable safeguards that tie infrastructure delivery to the phasing of development.

Without these measures and effective monitoring, development could move ahead faster than the roads and services our communities rely upon.

Getting future development right

CPRE Leicestershire recognises the need for new homes, employment opportunities and infrastructure. Our concern is ensuring these needs are met without unnecessarily sacrificing the countryside.

As the Hinckley & Bosworth Local Plan progresses, we want to see a clearer justification for development on greenfield land, stronger safeguards for the open countryside and infrastructure planned alongside growth rather than after it.

We will continue to follow the Local Plan as it progresses.

Help give Leicestershire’s countryside a stronger voice

Our planning work is one of the ways CPRE Leicestershire speaks up for the countryside and the communities that value it. By becoming a member, you can help strengthen that voice.