Inspector to consider 2,200-home Salt Cross Garden Village

A Government inspector has been appointed to oversee areas of the proposed 2,200-home Salt Cross garden village.

The planning application for the scheme in West Oxfordshire was submitted by Grosvenor Developments in July 2020.

But earlier this year West Oxfordshire District Council (WODC) submitted the scheme’s area action plan (AAP) to the Planning Inspectorate for independent examination under the Town and Country Planning Regulations.

Now Darren McCreery has been appointed by Secretary of State Robert Jenrick to chair hearings on the AAP.

The hearings will begin on June 28 and run for two weeks, after which Mr McCreery will decide whether to give the plan the green light to proceed through the planning process.

Chris Hargraves, planning policy manager at WODC, said: “This is an extremely important part of the process of developing Salt Cross.

“It has taken three years to get to this point but we are delighted to welcome Mr McCreery and look forward to the hearings and receiving his feedback.”

Mr McCreery will consider issues including whether current and future housing needs are being met, transport infrastructure, potential net zero carbon development and policies surrounding the Salt Cross science and technology park.

Once adopted, the AAP will be used alongside the Local Plan and Eynsham Neighbourhood Plan to determine future proposals at Salt Cross.

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