Act Now – Respond to the Oxfordshire Plan 2050
Consultation on the vision for the Oxfordshire Plan (Oxfordshire Joint Statutory Spatial Plan) closes 25th March 2019.
This is a once in a generation opportunity to influence the development of Oxfordshire and ensure decisions are not wholly made by Government and developers.
Read the Oxfordshire Plan 2050 Vision Consultation March 2019 Need Not Greed Response.
Visit Oxfordshire Plan 2050 website: https://oxfordshireplan.inconsult.uk/consult.ti/Oxfordshire_Plan_Intro/consultationHome
Please respond, there are three ways to have your say:
1 Respond by making comments on the consultation document https://oxfordshireplan.inconsult.uk/consult.ti/Oxfordshire_Plan_Intro/viewCompoundDoc?docid=10669236
Respond quickly: copy and paste the suggested text below into the introduction section.
Create your own response: see the NNGO response above to learn more and prepare your own response.
2 Respond by filling in the online questionnaire
https://oxfordshireplan.inconsult.uk/consult.ti/Oxfordshire_Plan_Intro/respondByQuestionnaire
3 Send the suggested text below direct to info@oxfordshireplan.org
Suggested text
The proposed level of growth would be transformational to Oxfordshire and have huge environmental and social impacts, and yet there is no open public debate – the growth targets for this Plan are already assumed.
* Growth must be justified in terms of the benefits it will bring, and how, and not as an end in itself.
* This Plan is predicated on getting large numbers of people to move to Oxfordshire. Where are the social equity implications for Oxfordshire and other parts of the UK being considered?
* Sustainability should be embedded more firmly as a core objective in the strategy, with environmental and social sustainability given at least equal status to that of economic growth.
* The complex timetabling of the Oxfordshire Plan 2050, and its relations to key decisions about the Expressway, need urgent clarification.
* The governance and accountability for the Oxfordshire Plan 2050 needs to be more transparent and locally accountable.
* There must be transparency on how the responses to this consultation are to be used and how the next stages of the Plan process are subsequently revisited, improved and refined.
* A publicly accessible interactive map of the whole County should be prepared showing the impact of all the proposed developments.
* The requirements of our ‘climate emergency’ are underplayed throughout the document and should be given much greater prominence.
* There are a number of differences between the consultation document signed off by our local councils and the final publication version. This process requires explanation.
* We need a commitment to a fully funded and robust green infrastructure strategy and action plan.
The Oxfordshire Plan 2050 – planning for the next generation
Consultation on the vision for the Oxfordshire Plan (Oxfordshire Joint Statutory Spatial Plan) is now open, closes 25th March 2019.
This is a once in a generation opportunity to influence the development of Oxfordshire and ensure decisions are not wholly made by Government and developers.
At this stage the consultation looks at the Vision and Objectives, not specific targets. However, NNGO believes it’s critical to challenge the underlying assumptions:
- 300,000 more houses need to be built in Oxfordshire
- By 2050 an additional 558,000 will be living in Oxfordshire. In fact, under current plans this figure is more likely to be an additional 690,000 and therefore doubling the population of Oxfordshire.
- That a new Oxford-Cambridge Expressway will be built.
- That all of the above will create an Oxfordshire version of ‘Silicon Valley’.
NNGO fears these key elements have already been decided by the Oxfordshire Growth Board, or rather central government.
Find out more:
The consultation document sets out a series of aspirations, issues to consider, a vision and objectives to guide development in Oxfordshire to 2050.
Visit the Oxfordshire Plan 2050 website to read the document Introducing the Oxfordshire Plan and a series of Topic Papers which give more detailed information on specific areas e.g. housing.
You can respond to the consultation by:
filling in an online questionnaire,
commenting directly on the online document
or emailing your comments to the Oxfordshire Plan Team: info@oxfordshireplan.org
Please note there is also a consultation running simultaneously on the Oxfordshire Plan 2050 Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report. Read NNGO’s response here.
Act NOW to Protect South Oxfordshire
The South Oxfordshire Local Plan is proposing housing way beyond what is required to meet local needs, putting our rural character – our countryside and communities – at risk. Nearly a third of the housing is allocated within the Oxford Green Belt, undermining its protection in contrast to stated Government policy.
Help us to challenge this Plan!
Download the CPRE guide – South Oxon LP Jan 19 – CPRE Oxon How to Respond
The Local Industrial Strategy
The Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (OxLEP) is currently preparing the Local Industrial Strategy for the county. The aim of the Local Industrial Strategy (LIS) is to create an economy that boosts productivity and earning power, a long term plan that provides a policy framework against which major private and public sector investment decisions are made.
NNGO says local people and sound planning principles, not an unaccountable quango and developers’ aspirations, should have a say on a strategy that will dictate future economic strategy for the county.
Peter Jay, Chairman of ROAR (Rural Oxfordshire Action Rally), says:
“There is no process for public consultation and it appears the strategy will only receive final endorsement from the Oxfordshire Growth Board after it has already been approved by Government. This is despite ‘Ideas’ and ‘People’ being the first of ‘five foundations of productivity’ on which the Industrial Strategy is based.”
NNGO wrote to Greg Clark MP, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Oxfordshire MPs and OxLEP asking that Oxfordshire’s Local Industrial Strategy is subject to full public consultation.