C-POW

11/03/2023

☀️ SOLAR PANELS?! Have you heard? There are plans afoot to erect the LARGEST solar farm in EUROPE around our villages - the size of 2000 football pitches.

It's the Botley West Solar Farm - it's NOT in Botley.

It is planned for the fields around the villages of Bladon, Wootton, Woodstock, Cassington, Church Hanborough, Begbroke and more.

Permission to build the Solar Farm will be decided by the Secretary of State because it is classified as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP). Public pressure has the most impact early in the application process and so it is important to take action now before it is too late.

STOP BOTLEY WEST is a collective campaign, made up of resident groups from each of the effected villages as well as other experts and politicians. Many members are pro-solar but feel this proposal is a step too far. STOP BOTLEY WEST is the central voice taking action to stop the Botley West Solar Farm.

Want to help the campaign to stop the Solar Farm? Go to the SBW website at www.stopbotleywest.com and DO TWO THINGS:

1. Sign the petition.
2. Subscribe for updates.

If you would be prepared to host a placard on your property then please drop a note in the comments or message us at C-POW and we will pass on your message.

For more information, news, resources and ways to support the campaign visit
the STOP BOTLEY WEST website. https://stopbotleywest.com/

Join the Facebook group Botley West Solar Farm Residents' Group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/876480130025971

See where the panels will be:
https://stopbotleywest.com/learn-more/f/how-big-is-big

We are a local group of residents working to stop Botley West, a plan from developers and landowners to cover your countryside in an ocean of metal and glass.

10/03/2023

WATCH: We updated our video in response to Blenheim's application revisions. Take a look, we added another 3 mins (13 in total) so certainly time for a cuppa (or zip through to the end for the last 3 minutes).

Current building applications total 1215 houses in Woodstock. They would almost double the size of the town. The WODC Local Plan says Woodstock can cope with 600 new homes.

180 houses are proposed for Hill Rise. There is no safe walking or cycling route to town and new residents would put pressure on already struggling infrastructure (parking, schools, surgery, library). Plans for infrastructure are vague or non-existent.

Watch our video to understand more.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqIq15ytMGI&t=8s

www.c-pow.org.uk

Campaign video in response to September 2022 planning application revisions, updated December 2022.Campaign to Protect Old Woodstock (C-POW) is an active res...

09/03/2023

REFUSAL & APPEAL: As you may already know West Oxfordshire District Council’s planning commitee decisively rejected Blenheim Estate’s application to build 180 homes on the Hill Rise site. The reasons for refusal are set out below.

Blenheim Estate has appealed against the decision. This is not unexpected.

C-POW has requested and been granted Rule 6 status in this appeal. This means that we will effectively be treated as a party to the Appeal and will be able to put forward our arguments, cross-examine witnesses and so on.

The Appeal will be by public inquiry and will be decided by a Planning Inspector. It is set to last for six days and the public may attend. The dates set aside for the inquiry are 6, 7, 8, 9 and 13,14 June 2023. We don’t yet know the venue
but will let you know in due course.

C-POW will do all we can to help defeat Blenheim’s appeal.

REFUSAL REASONS:

1 The proposed development fails to demonstrate that the proposed development can be satisfactorily accommodated on the site without significant landscape harm given the proposed land uses, densities and building heights and its sensitive edge of town location and topography. This would be to the detriment of the surounding rural landscape and the setting of Woodstock. The proposed development also fails to demonstrate a high quality design and development that would be sustainable and that would provide an integrated, safe and connected community that would form a positive addition to Woodstock in conflict with Policies EW4, OS2, OS4 and EH2 of the West Oxfordshire Local Plan to 2031, the West Oxfordshire Design Guide, relevant paragraphs of the NPPF and the National Design Guide.

2 The applicant has not entered into a legal agreement or agreements to secure the provision of affordable housing and custom/self-build houses; or contributions to education; transport and movement; sport and leisure; biodiversity enhancements, community well-being; health and social care; waste and recycling and the conservation, maintenance and restoration of the Blenheim Palace World Heritage Site and monitoring costs. The proposal thus conflicts with West Oxfordshire Local Plan 2031 Policies OS5, H3, EH3, EH4, EH5, T1, T2, T3 and EW9.

You can follow the Appeal documents at the previous WODC Planning Portal link for this application. By default, the most recent are at the top. The Statement of Cases are worth a read, C-POWs will be submitted soon.

Planning Portal link: https://publicaccess.westoxon.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=QN6JV6RK01000

www.c-pow.org.uk

09/11/2022

You can still comment!

Current building applications for 1215 houses in Woodstock include:
180 Land East of Hill Rise
235 Land North of Banbury Road
300 Park View (permission given, being built)
500 Land South of Perdiswell Farm (near the Bladon roundabout)

They would almost double the size of Woodstock. Three sites have not been given planning permission and you can comment on their applications up to the decision date. Links to the planning portals are on our website homepage: www.c-pow.org.uk

Photos below show Woodstock before houses were built at Park View and what Woodstock would look like if all of the current planning applications were passed.

09/11/2022

Blenheim Estate are applying for planning permission to build 1215 houses in Woodstock. The WODC Local Plan 2031 advises 600 houses for Woodstock, so Blenheim aim to build more than double the amount that the Local Plan says Woodstock could cope with.

This gross overdevelopment poses a threat to the World Heritage Site, its setting and the historic town of Woodstock. C-POW put this to the Oxford Mail.

Blenheim itself poses a threat to its world heritage status by promoting overdevelopment within its setting and by neglecting historic buildings…

14/01/2022

WATCH:
3 Housing Estates by a World Heritage Site
Pye Homes is owned by Blenheim Estate (Palace) and together they are pushing West Oxfordshire District Council to pass planning applications that will increase the size of the historic town of Woodstock by 41%.

Damaging pressure would be imposed on the already inadequate infrastructure and acceptable solutions have not been presented.

We have made this video to help you to easily understand the key concerns. We hope it does that. Please take 10 mins to watch to the end.

What do you think?

If you feel strongly, you can easily comment on the planning applications. Comments are accepted until the decision date which is tbc. Our website homepage has the links to the commenting portal.

UPDATE: That is now 4 housing estates, totalling 1215 houses. The fourth development applciation is near the Bladon roundabout as we suggest in the video.

www.c-pow.org.uk

08/01/2022

💥 Comment AGAIN! By this Fri 14th.
OVER-DEVELOPMENT of a small historic Oxfordshire town and World Heritage setting. Comment deadline has been extended to Friday 14th January and comments are likely to be accepted after that date.

Blenheim Estate (own Pye Homes) have REVISED their planning applications. They have largely ignored the consultees’ advice as they have changed little in their plans. We believe the fundamental problems are still there.

Please comment on the revised plans. You can comment as many times as you like!

A summary of our objections is on our website: www.c-pow.org.uk You can download our template objection, although please try to use your own words as they carry more weight.

You can object by:
👉 Commenting at West Oxfordshire District Council (WODC) planning portal (links on our website homepage)
👉 Writing to: Planning Department, West Oxfordshire District Council, Elmfield, New Yatt Road, Witney, OX28 1 PB (Ref. 21/00189/FUL)
👉 Telephoning the Council to object – tel. 01993 861000
👉 Emailing: [email protected] quoting the reference number 21/00189/FUL

Our knowledge and focus is on Old Woodstock but please also consider the concurrent Banbury Road application (250 houses, ref. 21/00217/OUT) which, together with Hill Rise and the other Blenheim developments, will result in a 41% increase in the population of Woodstock.

Thank you for reading.

29/12/2021

💥 WODC’s planning portal is down!
💥 EMAIL COMMENTS to [email protected] quoting ref: 21/00189/FUL (Hill Rise).

If you are commenting on Banbury Road, use ref: 21/00217/OUT

Any problems, please message us at [email protected]

Thank you!

05/05/2021

Elections! What about Woodstock Town Council? We have contacted all 13 of the candidates for WTC and we're sharing our findings with you. Click on the image below to read a brief summary of some key issues (in MailChimp).

C-POW contacted all 13 candidates to find out their view on the proposed development at Hill Rise and related issues.