Sir – When planning permission for the Shilton Park estate was granted, the residents of Brize Norton were given assurances that no further development to the east of Carterton would be permitted.
Furthermore, West Oxfordshire District Council’s Local Plan 2011 clearly states the importance of protecting the rural setting and separate identity of Brize Norton by the retention of sufficient open land between Carterton and Brize Norton.
The plan identified the proposed Carterton East housing site as the area providing this important buffer between the two communities.
Although the buffer was subject to the very strict NE2 planning policy which protects areas from urban sprawl, the council is now proposing to build 700 houses on the buffer zone.
What’s not clear is what has changed. Is the protection of Brize Norton as a separate and thriving community no longer important?
Glen Pratley, Burford Road, Brize Norton
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