The outline planning application by Persimmon Homes to build 250 houses on the site off Shillingston Drive is now available for public viewing from the Shropshire Council website. The plans are especially controversial because they involve a major development directly adjacent to Lion Coppice, an area of ancient semi-natural woodland that is a priority habitat under the Shropshire Biodiversity Action Plan as well as nationally.
There will now be a statutory 21-day period during which public comments are invited. All such comments will be published and will be taken into consideration by the Planning Committee when making their decision. Twenty-one days is not a lot of time to put together a case for opposing such a complex application, but fortunately the Berwick and Battlefield Residents group has been hard at work for the last several weeks and a comprehensive and robust case will be made for rejecting the application. Even so we will need to add as many voices to the objection as possible so comprehensive instructions on how you can make your objection count will be posted on this website shortly.
Whilst there are many reasons to object to the proposal on pure planning considerations, our primary goal at this time is to ensure that the planning decision is made fairly and this can only be done by having this proposal judged in comparison with other proposals for possible greenfield development areas around Shrewsbury. This is the SAMDev process and Persimmon's attempts to bypass that process are our most immediate concern.
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The planning application is available online here:
