Wiltshire Council refuse Calne housing development

The site stretched across four agricultural fields and an attenuation pond

A large housing development has been refused over infrastructure concerns and the impact on local services.

The application was submitted in 2022 by Robert Hitchins and proposed building up to 100 new homes on land east of Spitfire Road in Calne.

Wiltshire Council found that the proposal was contrary to multiple policies in the Wiltshire Core Strategy and denied planning permission.

It also cited "issues of noise, odour and dust impacts" from a nearby farm.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the property company anticipated that the residential areas would achieve an average net density of 40 dwellings per hectare, and that the buildings would have a "distinct character" to "complement their surrounding context".

Lack of services

The application added: "The proposed development will create much needed housing in Calne in a sustainable location whilst improving public access across the site and to the wider pedestrian and cycle network."

However, Calne Town Council and Calne Without Parish Council objected to the plans, expressing concerns about the location of the homes and their impact on local services.

The town council said: "The level of recent development in Calne has left a serious issue with infrastructure in the town and this application will worsen the situation.

"Specifically, there is real concern that no additional doctors and dentists have been provided to address the additional housing numbers and residents are already experiencing issues in accessing medical and dental provision in the town."

The western edge of the North Wessex Downs National Landscape is less than 1.5km from the edge of the site

About 13 further representations were received, with residents raising issues such as potential traffic congestion and the loss of greenfield.

The case officer report from Wiltshire Council ruled: "Without suitable and appropriate mitigation, the application proposal has not demonstrated that no ecological harm will result, and insufficient information has been provided to approve the application at this outline stage."

It was concluded that the identified harm outweighed the acknowledged benefits, "particularly in light of the fact that the council can at the current time, demonstrate sufficient supply of housing land".