Object

Representation ID: 7484

Received: 03/09/2021

Respondent: Mr Jonathan Hambleton

The Oxford-Cambridge Arc identifies a delivery period of 2050. Bedford Borough Council consider that the draft Local Plan aligns with the Arc in terms of growth and infrastructure, though the two are currently misaligned in terms of timescales. It may be feasible, for example, for a dispersal development strategy to be applied which would align better with the timescales identified within the current draft Local Plan, and therefore accord with policies 22 and 221 of the NPPF. However, large urban extensions and new settlements may need to look beyond 2050, and this would align better with the Arc.

The Arc and its rationale and the housing numbers are not soundly argued nationally or locally. The correct linking of timescales for the consultations/proposals is logical but the use of the assumed outcomes of the Arc routing cannot be used as the basis on which you then select the Dennybrook site as being a good option. It therefore follows that any large scale allocations over 2,500 homes should not be permitted until the Oxford Cambridge arc has developed its spatial strategy.