Oakhurst Residents Say "No to Tadpole Farm" - Thank you from ORA for your support

Over the last weeks we have been out knocking on doors and talking to you all about Tadpole Farm and we have been overwhelmed by the level of support you have continued to show for the campaign against development at Tadpole Farm. 

We have received well over three hundred written objections to the Tadpole Farm planning application over the last week.  This is a clear and robust expression of the level of feeling in the area about this issue.

Oakhurst says,  "No to Tadpole Farm".  The vast majority of people we have spoken to have been clear that the plans submitted by the developer fall woefully short of Oakhurst's expectations.  You could not bridge the gap between Oakhurst's demands for infrastructure such as transport, school places, health care services and employment and what the developer is offering.

Members of the North Swindon Communities’ Association (NSCA) say “We Are Stronger Together”

The North Swindon Communities’ Association is made up of community representatives from across the whole of North Swindon including the Parish Councils of Haydon Wick, Blunsdon St Andrew, Moredon Residents' Group, Oakhurst Residents’ Association, Rodbourne Cheney Residents’ Association, St Andrew’s Ridge Residents’ Association and the Whitworth Road Residents’ Association.   

At a recent meeting on 12th January 2012, which was also attended by residents from Haydon End, Redhouse, St Andrew’s Ridge and Oakhurst, the NSCA put together their mission statement: 

·       To bring together North Swindon community and interest groups to discuss matters of mutual interest in a non-political context.

·       To share information.

·       To speak as one voice.

·       To take action on agreed issues affecting the community within North Swindon.

·       To be ‘stronger together’.  

It was emphasised by members of the group that they wanted a "grassroots up" Association with the community taking the lead.  Terry Hunt (Chairman of Rodbourne Cheney Residents’ Association) was duly elected the new Chair of the NSCA.

Date for North Swindon Locality Meeting

Formerly known as North Swindon Cluster Group, the next meeting of the North Swindon Locality will take place at 7:00pm on Wednesday, 1^st February 2012 at Blunsdon Village Hall, High Street, Blunsdon, Swindon SN26 7AT. 

The agenda will include updates on Neighbourhood Policing, Section 106, Mouldon Hill and the Redhouse Community Centre.

Details For Next Meeting of North Swindon Communities' Associations

The next meeting of the NSCA will be held at 7:00pm on Thursday, 12th January 2012 at Oakhurst Community Primary School, Pioneer Road, Oakhurst, SN25 2HY.

If you would like a copy of the agenda or have any items to be added to the agenda then please let Paul Exell, Chair of ORA, know: paul.exell@rwe.com or 07989 494421.

ORA's suggestions for a Standard Objection/Comment Letter

PLANNING APPLICATION S/11/1588

RESIDENT'S COMMENTS

TO:  Mr I Halsall, Planning Officer, Swindon Borough Council,

Wat Tyler House, Beckhampton Street, Swindon, SN1 2JH

Resident’s Name & Address:  

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

I  am/we are concerned about the following issues:-

Road congestion/traffic impact:  The proposal has seemingly unrealistic forecasts of the impact of the development on existing traffic flows and there are concerns that the traffic assessment does not accurately reflect the impact of the proposals.  This leads to serious concerns that existing local roads, along with the main routes that they feed into, cannot handle the additional traffic that will arise from this application.    The plans propose just three points of exit for traffic, Oakhurst Way, Saltzgitter Drive and through Blunsdon Village, none of which is suitable for the addition of large volumes of traffic. There is also no direct route from the proposed site to the town centre or main employment areas, which will also lead to an increase in traffic leaving the site.  The proposed rapid transport route is unfeasible as it will have to share the existing roads with no ability to use bus lanes.  The increased volumes of traffic will have an adverse impact on the quality of life of the existing communities, along with the associated safety risks for roads that are already difficult for school children and pedestrians to cross.  The area of search defined in the traffic modelling is not comprehensive and does not take into account the views of the community which were expressed at the developers’ consultation.

Link Magazine Article - S.106 Rabbits Will Be Pulled From the Hat

http://www.swindonlink.com/news/what-section-106-rabbits-will-be-pulled-from-the-hat

North Swindon Forum Confusion - Where's our developer money gone and does anyone want us to know?

Oakhurst Residents' Association belong to the North Swindon Forum which is hosted by the Borough. A meeting date of the 23rd November was mooted to discuss the thorny subject of where the £20m+ of developer money went and why less than 20% of it was spent on facilities in our area. Senior figures from the Borough (both officers and elected members) were to be invited to answer questions from the community.