We have a new Focus leaflet going out in Downhall and Rawreth ward, starting this weekend and hopefully finishing by just after Christmas.
If anyone wants to help deliver sometime over the next 3 weeks or so, please let us know….
We have a new Focus leaflet going out in Downhall and Rawreth ward, starting this weekend and hopefully finishing by just after Christmas.
If anyone wants to help deliver sometime over the next 3 weeks or so, please let us know….
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Good summary coverage of the large scale housing development and a heads up on Countryside – need to start making people aware now , on how to respond to their
Leaflet drop.
Their leaflet will no doubt include a website or e-mail address, we need thousands of West Rayleigh/Rawreth residents to respond with a list of concerns –
Traffic overload in both Rawreth Lane& London Road during construction & beyond.
Building on a known Flood Plain.
Overwhelming the local infrastructure ( Schools/ Doctors/Public Transport/Services).
And when they book the 200 seat Pope John Paul hall for a presentation we need at
Least a 1000 to attend and make them aware of the strength of feeling.
With local Council elections in 2014 it is a chance for you to question the candidates on what their position is and if they voted for this mass development.
Chris & Co – suggest a specific Focus newsletter immediately after Countryside leaflets in order to raise awareness and ask for the big response.
The Echo is reporting that Basildon is near to completing its Core Strategy and it will include plans for up to 12,000 new homes – double the original proposals. Where will they go? One campaign group is concerned they will link Wickford with Rayleigh.
What will be the impact on our district, especially Highways?
Jim have you tried to get a hard copy of the form. I tried the Rayleigh office today and there were none. I have ordered 3 to be sent to me and will photo copy one for any resident who cannot for whatever reason respond on line. perhaps anyone who is able to print off the response form or photo copy one can ensure those people who want to respond have a hard copy. We all agree a mass response is needed.
@Brian Guyett Post 2
Brian raises an interesting point and one that I made in Full Council (minuted) when the Rochford Core Strategy was “adopted” in December 2011 where I was concerned that the Government’s introduction of the duty to co-operate could give our District more houses than even RDC was planning for in its present Core Strategy.
The Duty to Co-operate is a statutory duty (by Law) for one Council to co-operate with a neighboring Council and take some of the other’s housing requirement.
With the TGSE SHMA 2013 (Google or a search on this site or rochfordessex.com explains this)remaining unpublished one wonders how many of Basildon’s 12,000 might be placed in Rochford District. Basildon objected to the RDC Core Strategy so the runes have been cast.
The statute provides the opportunity for Basildon to serve a formal Notice and Rochford District Council has by Law to demonstrate that it has fulfilled the duty to co-operate in front of a Planning Inspector. That would be in the Revision of The Core Strategy which RDC is committed to commence in January 2014.
There have been many examples of Councils which have failed to defeat the requirements of neighbouring Councils and you can find these on Google.
As I said the TGSE SHMA 2013, which would publish new strategic housing needs (targets) for the sub region of Southend,Thurrock, Castle Point, and Rochford District etc., has yet to be published. Could the Duty to Co-operate be at the root of the hesitation? Has Basildon broken that silence? There was also a leak in Echo anout what was in the SHMA.
Will the TGSE SHMA be published before the Local Elections in May 2014?
And are the political parties that will be fighting to get control of Rayleigh on housing policy, and ultimately Rochford District, looking the wrong way when Basildon and the other adjoining Councils have this power to take more housing in our District?
Even if there is a “Change in Overall Control” at Rochford District Council by the cumulative effects of the Local Elections of 2014,2015 and 2016 perhaps because of Government Policy they would not be able to make any change at all?
Brian – as I said some time ago , we are called NIMBY’s because of our efforts in West Rayleigh but it is widespread in each district – Government quotas / compliant Councils/ Government Inspectors / rubber stamped by Government Sec of State.
But we have a falling birthrate / ageing ( therefore dying out) population but it’s build,build, build – wonder why £££££££££.
Bruce – hard copy is a good idea, the online version is not easy ( wonder why) , and
Not all the grey vote are PC orientated – lesson learned = could have been printed on reverse side of Forum leaflet ( idea for future)….JIM.
@Jim Cripps Post 5
Agree. The Federation of National House Builders commenced a powerful lobby for the new Government to turn against General Election promises but it was George Osborne, who unimaginatively, and with little regard for the history of previous housing bubbles, created the Economic Policy called Planning for Growth (or back to the Housing Bubble) as a way of getting back into Cycle of Boom and Bust promoting the building of new homes in the South,South East where The Federation of National House Builders could make the best profits rather than the places they were actually needed. Our housing growth in Rochford District met our needs for the last 10 years and probably would have again met our local needs over the next.
I have copies of the form and will deliver to anyone who needs one. Sadly the people reading this will be able to fill in the form on line anyway. But if you know someone who does need a hard copy let me know. perhaps we should all be ringing RDC and asking to be sent copies as another way of showing strength of feeling and giving forms to others to complete. Also note some elderly residents may not be able to use a key board due to athritis or other medical conditions.
Bruce, from my experience, people will not understand and will be put off responding. We found a prefilled form, with suggested response completed, leaving only personal details to be entered, is best way.
Brian just received the hard copies and whole heartedly agree. I know, or thought I knew what to do. It is not clear unless you study the documents carefully which part is Rayleigh and how to complete the forms. People will simply not bother. How can we insure a large response but with out having lots of identical ones.
Jim Cripps (re post #5)
You are totally wrong.
The population of the UK is rising rapidly, from three main causes, in no particular order:
Net Immigration, arising from both EU legal immigration and other legal immigration plus illegal immigration;
Increasing longevity of the existing population;
Rising UK birth rate (it is already causing great strain on maternity services).
All these factors are exacerbating the shortage of UK housing already extant due to the severe fall in house building over the last five years especially, beginning with the 2008 crash and only recently beginning to pick up, and people must be housed.
I believe that the expected rises in UK population forecast in today’s newspapers are ultimately unsustainable for this small and relatively densely populated island but, until limitations can be and are imposed, there is and will remain still an almighty imbalance of supply and demand for housing from which Rochford District cannot be completely isolated. I suspect that may only be achieved by radical changes to the EU free movement policy or by UK withdrawal from the EU, but RDC has done its best by implementing a Core Strategy which will take less than 1% of our current 92% green belt, whereas Basildon apparently admits its plans for 12500 homes will reduce its green belt from 63% to 59% (source Basildon Echo).
Manipulation of statistics to suit the argument – Deanes School closed due to under application and
falling birthrate only last week.
The aging population already have homes (or where have they been living for 65 + years).
So we have to suffer because successive governments have wed us to the EU and all the obvious immigration
problems – solve the root cause not make residents take the pain.
Once again no joined up thinking – Rayleigh/Hullbridge/Hall Rd/Blinking Owl/Basildon development will swamp the area infrastructure.
If the birth rate is booming whay no schools/hospitals
and so on in your plans – OH , I forgot your not responsible for all that (nor the Travellers Site)…
Out of touch sir.
Bruce , me too – tried and failed, let me have a hard copy to fill in and submit ( feels like the much vaunted ‘consultation phase’ , make it difficult to object), thanks JIM.
I agree that the UK Population is rising at an unsustainable rate, but why build houses in areas where they are not needed. We have a stable population rate (relatively) in this area, we don’t need to encourage people to move here putting strain in infrastructure of all types, and where are the jobs for them. They will be commuters, straining already over capacity train services. Build where the houses are needed, go for local needs in local areas. I’ve said before it isn’t too few houses, it’s too many people, and Cllr. Seagers has more or less agreed with that. Perhaps when UKIP sweep the board at next year’s Euro polls Davey boy and Nick will wake up and start listening to us.
You are right on most points Christine .Just wait for the countrywide publicity from Countryside for the executive townhouses that will surely appear .An interesting exercise to find out where all the new residents will have come from ?On employment so many units in the RDC area are being converted for leisure use or housing as in Hockleys proposals ,why do we think we can attract new industry when our infrastructure can not cope with existing pressures. On UKIP there may well be a backlash but I have said on here before beware of wolves in sheeps clothing !Do not confuse Europe with local issues I do not think that Romanians or Bulgarians will be affording the new houses ,if they can ,then it shows how hard they are prepared to work as opposed to many work shy products of some of our secondary education .
14 & 15 above – please read # 7 ( John Mason) , sums it up perfectly so please don’t fall for all the damn lies & statistics they feed us, we are but pawns in a bigger game
and it’s a boom and bust cycle beginning again.
Good point about the ratio of executive homes v affordable homes , these will be the facts emerging from Countryside et al in their “consultation phase” – when we will challenge it en-masse.
Jim Cripps
You crucially miss the point that increased longevity (which is good news surely) means fewer homes are being vacated as that increase continues. Don’t older residents deserve a roof over their heads, and similarly for those immigrants already arrived here, indeed every resident of the UK, young or old?
No, you are missing the point – elderly / retired people (who have been sensible in their working life)
tend to live in houses that are not starter homes price wise.
So to cater for your increased birth rate (I don’t agree with that*)it will be bottom rung homes that are needed.
It will be interesting to see how many ( 5 Bed executive style)starter
homes that Countryside propose in 2014.
And by the way NO to the unknown number of illegal immigrants – they do not ‘deserve a home here’, why ?, because they are illegal.
Footnote * – the Echo letters page carries some statistics on birth rate data tonight.