URGENT!
Stop the proposed
'New Town'
at Great Glen, Stretton Hall & Oadby
We must take action now to prevent Harborough Council and Oadby & Wigston Council from rushing through a deeply flawed decision that will cause enormous damage to our environment and communities.
Dear Residents of Great Glen,
Stretton Hall, Newton Harcourt, Oadby, Houghton on the Hill, Burton Overy, Kibworth
& Surrounding Communities
Harborough council is about to rubber stamp a proposed “new town” development of 4000 houses around Stretton Hall and Great Glen, which would have a significant impact on our area. Oadby and Wigston council is also set to approve 2000 houses on adjacent land. This is a joint proposal between the two districts.
Shockingly, only around one in a thousand local residents currently know about this proposal.
STOP PRESS - the timetable has been changed by Harborough Council
Here is the new schedule:
• 16th January and 5th February 2025: Harborough Council local plan advisory meetings which will be partly in public session.
• 20th February 2025: A special Harborough Council cabinet meeting will be held to approve it.
• 3rd March 2025: Special council meeting to rubber stamp the plan.
• 12th March 2025: Public consultation.
While we acknowledge the need for more housing, this proposal is deeply flawed for many reasons: it sacrifices precious farmland, exacerbates overstretched infrastructure (roads, NHS, schools, and more), and ignores viable alternatives like brownfield and urban redevelopment.
We urge you to contact your local councillors immediately and let them know you fiercely oppose this development. Harborough Council must understand that we will not accept this plan, especially when it is being forced through at a time designed to limit public scrutiny.
WRITE TO YOUR COUNCILLORS NOW BEFORE THE PLANS ARE APPROVED
(downloadable letter templates below)
The Proposals
UPDATE - Harborough council has now delayed the publication of their proposals to February 13th. Currently this is what Harborough Council has made public. Note this has also been referred to as an 'accelerated site' in parliament.
As soon as the full proposed plan is published, we will publish those details here.
Oadby and Wigston have published their detailed proposals for their local plan.
Take Action Now!
If you live in HARBOROUGH DISTRICT contact these councillors:
Simon Galton
s.galton@harborough.gov.uk
Deputy Leader, Councillor, Thurnby Ward
(responsible for the local plan)
Rani Mahal
r.mahal@harborough.gov.uk
Councillor, Glen Ward
David Atkinson
david.atkinson@harborough.gov.uk
Director of Planning and Regeneration
(in charge of overall planning)
Or find your councillor in the full list of Harborough Councillors here.
DOWNLOAD AND SEND OUR TEMPLATE LETTERS to all three of these people
at Harborough Council:
SEND BEFORE THE CABINET MEETING IN HARBOROUGH ON JANUARY 6th.
If you live in OADBY & WIGSTON DISTRICT
contact these councillors:
Samia Z Haq
cllr.samia.haq@oadby-wigston.gov.uk
Leader of the Council
Santokh Athwal
cllr.santokh.athwal@oadby-wigston.gov.uk
Oadby Woodlands
Jasvir Chohan
cllr.jasvir.chohan@oadby-wigston.gov.uk
Deputy Mayor
Fula (Kamal) Ghattorraya
cllr.kamal.ghattoraya@oadby-wigston.gov.uk
Oadby Grange
Jeffrey Kaufmann
cllr.jeffrey.kaufman@oadby-wigston.gov.uk
Oadby Brocks Hill
Or find your councillor in the full list of Oadby and Wigston Councillors here.
DOWNLOAD AND SEND OUR TEMPLATE LETTER these people
at Oadby & Wigston Council:
Email planningpolicy@oadby-wigston.gov.uk to be added to the Oadby and Wigston consultation database.
3) SHARE THIS SITE with your neighbours and friends and ask them to get involved before it's too late.
4) DOWNLOAD the letter to alert residents and share with people you know.
This is not the solution
Alternatives do exist in more appropriate areas. Brownfield sites across England, including underused commercial spaces, can be developed to meet housing needs without sacrificing the greenbelt. Many such areas exist in Leicester city, where the need for social housing is acute. This approach would also revitalise urban areas, reduce energy consumption, and align with sustainability goals.
Approving this development is not the right decision. It would disregard the overwhelming opposition of local residents, prioritise short-term convenience over long-term sustainability and community welfare, and go against simple common sense.
Please use your voice and urge the council to reject this proposal, forcing the council to instead champion sustainable development that actually serves the community, protects our green spaces, respects our shared future, and provides housing where it is actually needed.
Why This Plan Is Flawed
Traffic
It would take traffic congestion on the A6 past breaking point, being a single carriageway road.
Farmland
It would destroy valuable and irreplaceable farmland, essential for UK food independence
Environmental Commitments
It would undermine environmental commitments (supposedly championed by Harborough council) by increasing carbon emissions and reliance on cars.
Ecology
It would damage wildlife and destroy ecosystems. This area is known to contain a number of badger sets, other diverse wildlife, vibrant hedgerows and mature trees.
Infrastructure
Local NHS services, sewage systems and other infrastructure are already stretched to the limit and cannot support a development on this scale.
No local industry
The local area is not appropriate for social housing required by the government, with poor transport and no local jobs, forcing such residents into expensive travel to find work in the city.
Flooding
Building on this land will drastically affect land drainage, and hence have a direct impact on flooding both in Oadby, and Great Glen, areas where this is already a serious problem.
Great Glen is a category 3 flood risk area.
Contradicts National Planning Policy Framework on Greenbelt land
It directly contradicts the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) which states that greenbelt land is inappropriate for such development unless ‘very special circumstances’ can be demonstrated. Clearly this is not the case.
Pollution
Pollution through Kibworth is already at the limit and being monitored. Increase in the already heavy traffic on the A6 will take this beyond permitted levels.
The Case Against
We have investigated why to consider building on this land is fundamentally flawed, and created a detailed document giving the case against.
Request our document via email below.
PLEASE DONATE TO SUPPORT OUR CAMPAIGN
We need to print flyers and print signs, pay for website and mailing list hosting.
We also hope to fund drone photography to prove just how severe the traffic problem on the A6 is already, and demonstrate that this is true greenbelt countryside.
We can't fund everything needed as individuals, and we need your support to keep this campaign going.
If you feel you can make a donation, you can do so through our 'GoFundMe' page. Every little helps.
Thank you so much!
Public Opposition Meeting
Over 200 people attended the recent public meeting hosted by Neil O'Brien MP and Alicia Kearns MP to oppose government plans for this new town in our area. Here is the full recording of the meeting for those who couldn’t make it, or were unaware that this proposal is in danger of being imposed on us.
Join our list and receive updates on the campaign
Gallery
This is a very small sample of what we would lose.
©Stop The New Town, All Rights Reserved.
Privacy Policy