Residents across Gedling borough have raised concerns over proposals that could see thousands of new homes allocated on greenfield and other sites by 2043.
Gedling Borough Council is preparing its draft Local Development Plan, which identifies land that could be used to deliver an additional 6,045 homes over the period to 2043.
The council could launch a six-week consultation in late June to gather feedback on proposed housing allocations in areas including Mapperley, Redhill, Ravenshead, Calverton and Linby.
Residents and councillors have raised concerns about traffic, flooding, pressure on schools and GP services, and the potential loss of green space.
In Calverton, up to 670 further homes could be built. The village has already expanded in recent years, with Persimmon close to completing a 363-home development in the north of the village. The company has also recently outlined plans for a further 154 homes nearby.
Under the council’s draft allocations, another 500 homes could be built on fields next to the Persimmon development off Park Road. Part of the land could also be used for a school and a shop.
Mike Isted MBE, 55, who has lived in the area for 10 years and in Calverton for three years, said he did not believe the proposals had local support.
“Nobody supports this, so if nobody supports it, that means those people who are in public office to represent those who have elected them should be doing the will of the people they’re representing – and that’s not the case,” he said.
Mr Isted, who retired from the military in 2014 after 26 years’ service, said Calverton had a strong identity and history.
“This village has a soul, it genuinely does,” he said.
But he raised concerns about whether new homes would meet local needs and whether public services would keep pace with development.
“Those houses are going up for sale [nearby] for nearly £300,000 – really? Who’s buying them then? It isn’t anyone from around here… people can’t afford to buy houses.
“I don’t believe the building will have any parity with increased public services, whether that was doctors, policing, or emergency service coverage.”
Independent borough councillor Andy Meads, who represents Calverton, said traffic in the village centre was already a major issue.
“We had 45 parking spaces in the centre of the village in the 1960s, and they’re the same parking spaces we’ve got now, and it’s probably 10 times as many cars.
“It’s not just that more people have got cars, it’s that these new developments are further and further away, so it’s blatantly obvious people are going to drive into the middle of the village and it’s chronic… you’ll get people pipping their horns, it’s like gridlock.”
Cllr Meads said Calverton had grown significantly since his childhood.
“It’s got this thing where everybody knew everybody… it’s still a village, but it’s a village that can’t cope with what we’ve got.
“Unless they do something with the parking now, which we’ve been asking for, we won’t cope with any more traffic.
“We call it Calver-town. Technically, it’s not, we haven’t got the facilities of it being a town, but obviously we’re already bursting at the seams now.”
In Redhill, near Arnold, around 1,300 extra homes could be built on the northern and western edges of the area.
Land south of Lime Lane has been allocated for 925 homes, alongside 150 homes that have not yet received planning permission. New Farm has also been allocated for 375 homes.
Residents living near the Lime Lane site said the area already experienced flooding and traffic problems.
Ian Caudell, 75, who lives near the land, said his area had previously been affected by water running off the field, with one neighbour’s home once “ruined” by flooding.
Despite this, he said: “It’s a lovely location, but it’s prime building land. It doesn’t belong to us, so we don’t really have a right… I don’t like the idea of restricting social necessities.”
Other residents raised concerns about the loss of wildlife, including red kites, skylarks, badgers and foxes.
Anne, who has lived nearby since 1988, said local services were already under pressure.
“We’ve hardly got enough doctors and schools, it’s got bigger since we’ve lived here – I think it’d be too much, too many. There aren’t enough shops – Arnold’s dying on its feet, and they don’t seem to be putting anything into replace anything.”
Another resident, who asked not to be named, said Mansfield Road was a key route for emergency services and already became heavily congested when there were problems.
“All emergency services come from it. Queens Medical Centre is the region’s trauma centre, and a lot of ambulances come that way – that road is the only one they can use.
“When we do get a problem on Mansfield Road, it gridlocks, the traffic has to come down Redhill, down the T-junction, traffic from other directions comes down Calverton Road, so it meets at a point, so when something happens, the whole of Arnold, Bestwood, it all gridlocks because none of it can empty because of the lack of available roads.”
The resident said people living near Red Hill Road and Mellors Road already felt trapped when traffic built up.
Ravenshead could also expand by nearly 1,000 homes under the draft plan. The proposed allocations include 750 homes at Silverland Farm, 120 at Kighill Lane and 50 off Nottingham Road.
Councillor Stuart Bestwick, Conservative borough councillor for the area, said residents were concerned about the effect on traffic, flooding, school places, GP capacity and the character of the village.
He said he did not want Ravenshead to see the same scale of change as Calverton.
“Ravenshead has a unique community, some of it is run on volunteers, from Ready Call, u3a, our community bus service… there’s something there for you in our village.
“I walk out my door, walk to shops, and I guarantee I’ll see someone I know and say hello. That spirit of the village, of organising things like community transport, when you introduce another set of homes that could have a detrimental effect on that community spirit for 60 years.”
Cllr Bestwick said the Silverland Farm allocation had caused concern among residents, particularly because of existing bottlenecks at the Larch Farm junction with the A60.
He added: “We’re holding a drop-in session on June 4th on how residents can object, and the parish council has enlisted the help of a planning consultant.”
In Mapperley, Mapperley Golf Club’s site off Plains Road and Central Avenue has been allocated for up to 750 homes.
The club has managed the site for 127 years. It has previously faced the prospect of development, with the council having allocated the area for up to 1,900 homes until 2011, before those plans fell through.
Staff at the club have recently said it is “thriving”.
Gedling borough and county councillor Sam Smith, Conservative, said the possible loss of the golf course was the “saddest” part of the allocations.
“It’s the only golf course this side of Calverton. It’s the jewel in Gedling’s crown.
“It brings in spending to Gedling borough. Others stop off for lunch, have breakfast, it’s a great venue for community events, birthdays. To build on that is a disgrace, and it will absolutely increase flooding.
“The council talk about wellbeing and lifestyle choices. They have already closed Gedling Indoor Bowls Club’s site, now it’s the golf club – what it does for senior residents’ and mental health and wellbeing is amazing.”
Other proposed allocations in the draft plan include 125 homes at the former Sherwood Academy in Gedling, 650 homes at Mapperley Plains East, 500 homes as an extension to the Teal Close development between Netherfield and Stoke Bardolph, and 140 homes as an extension to the Willow Farm development.
The draft plan also includes 880 more homes at Top Wighay Farm, north of Hucknall, and 300 more homes as an extension to Westhouse Farm in Bestwood Village.
The council has not yet made a final decision on the allocations. If the consultation is approved, residents will be able to comment on the draft Local Development Plan before it progresses further through the planning process.
