Protest against 100-home development on 'irreplaceable community asset' in Houghton Regis gains town council support

It was a milestone moment for the Friends of Windsor Drive when Houghton Regis Town Council voted to support the group in its campaign to stop 100 new homes being built on Windsor Drive.

Group spokesperson Jo Anderson said: “We’re pleased with the final outcome of the full town meeting last month (June) when HRTC voted in two recommendations to support our message to Central Bedfordshire Council against the proposed development.

"We attended the meeting because we didn’t believe the original two recommendations went far enough – and several councillors agreed with us.”

HRTC will continue to offer support to the Group but, more critically, it will support the National Planning Policy Framework and its commitment to brownfield sites.

This means CBC would have to demonstrate they have exhausted all brownfield sites – like the old Netto site – before getting the backing of HRTC to build on Windsor Drive, currently a community open space.

Jo added: “We need CBC to drop their proposals now – but we’re not holding our breath.

"We’re mindful there’s still a long way to go towards securing a ‘No build on Windsor Drive’ statement from HRTC and, ultimately, CBC.

“Therefore we’ll keep on campaigning until we get a commitment not to build on our open space.”

> The Friends Group believe the combination of recreational and wildlife areas along the Brook/River Lea corridor is irreplaceable and truly an asset of community value. And they claim: “We will remain steadfast in our aim to resist any development.”