“The building of 4,000 houses to the north of Dorchester would ruin acres of beautiful West Dorset countryside and irreversibly change the character of our historic county town. A mass development of thousands of houses is completely unnecessary at a time when our small villages need modest, sustainable house building, particularly to provide for local … Continue reading Statement from Chris Loder MP | West Dorset
Author: standdorch
We must defend Dorchester’s green lung
A statement from Cllr. Richard Biggs, Mayor of Dorchester, on “DOR 13”, the proposed north Dorchester site for 4000 houses in the Local Plan. "The Town Council have re-iterated their fundamental opposition to Policy DOR 13 and will be engaging professional expertise to develop a robust objection. A plan to build houses there in the … Continue reading We must defend Dorchester’s green lung
Public Questions and Statements
Cabinet, 8 December 2020
Public Questions and Statements
Full Council, 10 December 2020
Public Participation
Persimmon Homes branded ‘shambolic’
Roads and pavements have been left unfinished as work starts on new houses, residents claim Residents on a new estate claim builders have left pavements incomplete, waste lying around and raised drains that damage car tyres. Persimmon Homes was last month given the go-ahead to build another 102 properties at Parc Derwen, in Coity, Bridgend. Read … Continue reading Persimmon Homes branded ‘shambolic’
Living in the shire
A piece from the Dorset Echo online The government dictate that the council must have a development plan. The council can only use government approved algorithms and methodology to assess the numbers of houses. That methodology is NOT based purely on need but includes provision for growth. You'll be told that x number of jobs … Continue reading Living in the shire
MP condemns the proposed development north of Dorchester
FROM THE OFFICE OF CHRIS LODER MPMember of Parliament for West Dorset PRESS RELEASE MP condemns the proposed development north of Dorchester in Parliament Today in the House of Commons, during a speech following the Chancellor’s statement, West Dorset MP Chris Loder condemned the development of 3,500 houses to the north of Dorchester, as proposed … Continue reading MP condemns the proposed development north of Dorchester
How many of these houses would be truly affordable, or for social rent?
What’s going on...? Developers often avoid building affordable/social housing in their developments. They claim it would make their whole scheme ‘financially unviable’. The 5 acre Dorchester Prison site, which will have no affordable/social housing, is a classic example. To avoid the legal fees associated with an appeal by developers, Dorset Council rarely challenge this practice. » … Continue reading How many of these houses would be truly affordable, or for social rent?
Garden village dream or tarmac estate?
This document is written for the non-specialist without knowledge of the planning system, but with an interest in new homes and how and where we are building them. It concentrates on the new ‘garden communities’ that are envisaged by government as offering a solution different from the usual car-based dormitory estates that we are so … Continue reading Garden village dream or tarmac estate?
The tax loophole that will allow the Ilchester Estate to make millions.
The tax loophole that will allow the Ilchester Estate to make millions out of the North Dorchester development. It’s the last day for responses to the Government’s latest proposals to reform the planning system, to “level up” and solve the housing crisis, if you believe the spin. The proposals include zoning land (at a large scale) … Continue reading The tax loophole that will allow the Ilchester Estate to make millions.
STAND walk arranged in conjunction with the Thomas Hardy Society
On Sunday (25th October) 17 people joined a walk, led jointly by STAND and the Thomas Hardy Society, across much of the countryside threatened by the development north of Dorchester. Field behing the Sun Inn.This field lies immediately behind and to the north of the Sun Inn in Lower Burton. An arm of the proposed … Continue reading STAND walk arranged in conjunction with the Thomas Hardy Society