ANDOVER councillors have raised concerns about plans for thousands of houses in the town as part of the borough council’s Local Plan.

In October 2021, Test Valley Borough Council set out a timeline for creation of its new local plan, which saw an initial consultation, held until April 8.

The Local Plan 2040 will guide future development within the Test Valley area and, upon adoption, will replace the current Test Valley Revised Local Plan 2011-2029.

In these first stage plans, the various towns and villages are split up into tiers, to ascertain which will play the largest roles in accommodation future development.

The documents read: “The towns of Andover and Romsey stand out as being the most sustainable, each with a full range and number of services and a high level of accessibility by public transport.

“These towns also play a key role in supporting the needs of the wider population in Test Valley and potentially beyond the Borough reflecting the high level of services available. For these reasons the two towns are placed in the tier 1 of the settlement hierarchy.”

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The plan goes on to outline the regeneration work planned in each of the two towns, and then looks at the housing requirements.

Between 2020 and 2040, 10,820 homes are needed across the borough, including more than 6,000 in northern Test Valley.

The decision to single out Andover as a key player in meeting these targets was a subject of concern for Andover town councillors when they engaged with the consultation at a meeting of the planning committee.

Cllr Barbara Long said: “It’s putting Andover in top level one with Romsey. They are putting lots of housing here, and we haven’t got the infrastructure. I have no idea where we will put another two to three thousand houses.”

Cllr Luigi Gregori added: “There is not really any more spaces in Andover unless they start taking out the business parks, so what they will do is look to the north and add another layer.”

Meanwhile, Christopher Ecclestone suggested: “In light of having a high school in Stockbridge, they should put 500 or so of those houses in Stockbridge!”

Overall, members thought it was too early to construct a proper consultation response. Cllr Nigel Long said: “TVBC likes the New Homes Bonus far too much, but it’s difficult to comment because this plan at this stage is far too vague.”

The full draft will be consulted on later this year, informed by responses from the first consultation.

To view the local plan, supporting information and consultation responses in full, visit: testvalley.gov.uk/localplan2040.

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