South Glos Greens welcome the new proposals by Homes England to build around 200 new homes on the former Kleeneze site at Anstey’s Road in Hanham. We have campaigned over the last five years for green, affordable housing to be built on the site and we’re excited to see that plans have now been made to do just that.
The proposals revealed last month include promising signs that the would-be development will represent a shift to a greener Hanham. The plans for 390 secure cycle spaces, better links to public transport and an electric car club are a big step in the right direction.
However, the proposals definitely need to go further if these houses are to benefit the whole community in Hanham.
The target of 35% of homes on the site being “affordable” is simply not good enough. There is no point building homes that people cannot afford to buy. If this development aims to relieve pressure on housing then Homes England must set a much more ambitious target for affordability – ideally as close to 100% as possible.
We would also like more details of how the developers and the local council will integrate the new estate into the rest of the community and deal with increased pressure on public transport, infrastructure, health and education. Funding for this should be available by means of the Community Infrastructure Levy, which wasn’t mentioned in the proposed plans.
South Glos Greens look forward to offering our ideas and suggestions for the new development and we’ll be keeping a close eye on its progress.