Albrighton Village Action Group hands in 3700-strong ‘Boningale Homes’ petition

A petition with over 3700 signatures has been handed to Shropshire Council as Albrighton Village Action Group (AVAG) steps up its campaign to protect over 50 hectares of beautiful green belt.

Mark Pritchard, MP for The Wrekin, joined concerned residents at The Shirehall to reinforce calls for Boningale Homes’ plans to build 800 homes and change crucial road infrastructure to be rejected.

Members of AVAG have said that nearly 83% of the Shropshire village’s eligible population has backed the petition, highlighting the overwhelming anger at the speculative overdevelopment.

The campaign group, which is made up of local volunteers, is now urging local people to turn signatures into official objections via the Shropshire Council planning website (https://pa.shropshire.gov.uk/online-applications/) – with 194 already lodged ahead of the current August 8th deadline.

To make things as easy as possible, AVAG has created two video guides (available on albightongreenbelt.co.uk) on how to register an objection and compiled nearly 40 key reasons why the overdevelopment should not take place and how it will change the village forever.

It is also hosting eight-drop-in sessions at the Red House, Melville Club and Scout Den, where volunteers will be available in person to help villagers go through the objection process.

“The campaign to protect our green belt really starts now and we are urging people who are opposed to Boningale Homes’ plans to strongly object – this is one of the best ways for us to win,” explained Charlie Blakemore, co-chair of the Albrighton Village Action Group.

“You can see the overwhelming feeling from local residents, with over 3700 signing the petition asking the council to reject this unneeded overdevelopment. There have also been 194 objections to the planning application already and this is growing daily. We are delighted to present this petition to Shropshire Council today on behalf of the village.”

He continued: “Our group supports appropriate development, and we have 771 new homes being built as part of the Local Plan that we support - that’s more than our fair share and will help support Labour’s housing push.

“Our village’s infrastructure, roads and amenities will not cope with another 800 houses. Location and scale of this speculative proposal is just not right.

“AVAG was also delighted that all general election candidates - across the complete political spectrum - recognised this and said they would object to the plans.”

Albrighton Village Action Group believes the Boningale Homes plan is just an attempt to make a quick profit on large swathes of green belt, a lot of which is currently being used for productive farming.

It will turn the village, referred to as the home of the English rose, into a town and put even more pressure on stretched infrastructure, including doctor’s surgery, roads and the train station.

Talk of economic benefit is misguided as the distance between the development and the high street could have a detrimental impact to independent retailers, whilst a new school is not needed and will just make other established nearby schools unviable.

Mark Pritchard, MP for The Wrekin, added his support: “I want to reiterate my support for the green belt and in protecting Albrighton against the overdevelopment proposed by Boningale Homes.

“My objection to this speculative green belt grab, which has little thought of how it may affect the village, has already been lodged and I will work with AVAG to fight these proposals.”

Charlie concluded: “The deadline for objecting is getting closer. We must translate this strong feeling into official objections and by donating to our fundraising campaign. This will cover the fees of the legal and planning specialists we are using to help fight these proposals and the green belt grab.

“It is important that our group and local residents fight greedy developers to ensure that future generations have rural villages and green spaces to live in and enjoy. There are so many brownfield sites that lie decaying that are in desperate need of development, and this is where the focus should be and not on permanently destroying beautiful countryside.

“We have the chance to be on the right side of history and protect our village for generations to come.”