Charnwood Borough Council - Leading in Leicestershire

On 14 March the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister published new estimates for the number of households needed across England up to 2021. This information is likely to persuade the Regional Assembly to increase its requirements for new homes in the East Midlands.

Charnwood Borough Council is also aware of a bid being processed by Leicester and Leicestershire Councils to become a ‘Growth Point’, along with Nottingham and Derby.

A ‘growth point’ is a scheme the government wants to adopt which will see the concentration of new homes and infrastructure (such as shopping and leisure facilities, transport links, and green spaces) in certain urban centres. This aims to protect the environment from inappropriate development and will reduce pressure on Greenfield land wherever possible.

Leader of the Council, Councillor Max Hunt, said: “This comes at a difficult time for Charnwood and other District Councils who are working up proposals for growth based on previous estimates.

“We will be supporting applications for growth point money from central Government within our current growth estimates but believe that a county wide debate is needed before consideration of further incursions into Districts like Charnwood on the city fringe.”