Maps shows Cotswold areas where 19,000 homes and new villages could be built

Summary

A new blueprint for almost 19,000 homes suggests major expansions to Cotswold towns and the creation of large villages over the next 20 years. Cotswold District Council’s new local plan, which will set out a long-term vision for the district, is being considered by councillors next month.

Details

It proposes the creation of ten strategic sites which include 3,717 homes in and around Cirencester , 2,217 homes in Moreton-in-Marsh and 1,658 homes in Down Ampney. Civic chiefs say the plan is “absolutely vital” to curb speculative development. And it will provide for healthy, sustainable communities, with growth carefully planned to create lasting benefits for current and future generations, they say.

The plan is underpinned by more than 40 studies and assessments and sets out where around 18,900 new homes could be delivered in the district by 2043. The council is proposing a stepped trajectory to achieve this by which they increase their annual housing need over time. They propose 420 homes to be built per year over the first five years.

This would rise to 1,064 homes per year from 2031 to 2036 with 1,550 homes being built every 12 months during the final five years of the plan. Planners say this is helpful because the majority of the planned housing will come forward on large strategic sites which take longer to get up and running. The local plan suggests 90 per cent of the housing target will be provided by the strategic sites.

And residents will get to have their say on these proposals during a six-week consultation from August 24 to October 5, 2026, if approved by councillors. The council says the local plan provides a framework based on local evidence to manage growth in a coordinated way, ensuring homes, jobs, transport, community facilities and environmental priorities are considered together, according to the council.

And development is planned in the most sustainable locations, protects valued landscapes, and sets ambitious standards for communities, they say. At the same time, they say it carefully balances the need for new development with the protection of the landscapes, heritage and distinctive character of the Cotswolds.

Much of that development is proposed on 10 strategic sites, allowing homes, employment, transport and community infrastructure to be planned comprehensively and sustainably. Work on the plan follows significant changes by the Government to the way housing need is calculated, as part of a drive to build 1.5million homes across the UK between 2024 and 2029.

This new method was introduced almost two years ago and more than doubled the district’s housing target – meaning the council can no longer demonstrate that it has a five-year supply of land for housing. This has left communities more vulnerable to speculative, piecemeal development.

---

Report source: Gloucestershire Live