MORE than £150,000 will be spent on drawing up a new housing plan in Castle Point, despite bosses admitting it is likely to be rejected.

The council wants to halve the number of homes it has to build in the next 20 years, from 4,000 to 2,000, with major schemes such as 275 homes on Canvey’s Dutch Village being wiped from its Draft Local Plan.

Chief executive David Marchant has warned councillors there is a “substantial risk” the Government will reject the scheme for failing to meet national planning policy.

The £150,000 to be spent on the latest plan comes after a number of attempts to develop housing strategies, costing thousands.

Castle Point Council previously spent nearly £500,000 on preparing an earlier development plan, which it withdrew in 2011 after a backlash from residents who argued they had not been properly consulted.

It then set aside £250,000 in reserves for development of a new local plan, but only £35,800 remained unspent by the end of 2014/15.

Council officers estimate further work to develop the plan will cost £190,000, which is why councillors are being asked to approve a further £154,200 being taken from reserves.

A previous version of Castle Point Council’s draft plan, proposing 4,000 homes by 2031, was thrown out by councillors at a heated meeting in January.

Opponents argued the borough could not find enough land to build on, because of its green belt and flood risk areas.

At a subsequent meeting last month, councillors supported a motion to remove selected green belt sites from the local plan.

It has led to planning officers drawing up a new document, removing controversial sites and halving the overall housing requirement.

Land off Kiln Road, Thundersley, previously set aside for 450 homes, now has only 235 homes proposed.

A proposal for 50 specialist residential care units on the former Castle View School site, in Meppel Avenue, Canvey, has been removed from the plan.

Development plans for green belt fields east of Canvey Road, identified for 275 homes in the rejected January plan, have also been scrapped.

A report from Mr Marchant, recommending the new draft is put out to public consultation, will be considered by councillors at a meeting next Wednesday.

Mr Marchant said: “Council is advised there is a substantial risk this new Local Plan is unlikely to meet the four tests of soundness as set out in the national framework.”

Councils must prove plans are positively prepared, justified, effective and consistent with national policy.

Graham Bracci, of the Canvey Green Belt campaign, is not convinced the new plan will get approved by the Government.

He said: “If the council achieve it, it would be fantastic, but is it achievable? The inspector has to be convinced.”

Echo:

A PETITION calling for a stop to major developments on Canvey, which has been signed by more than 1,700 people, will be handed to Castle Point Council next week.

After a meeting in January, organised by Canvey Independent Party councillor Martin Tucker, campaigners vowed do “everything in their power” to stop homes being built on the island.

Hundreds of islanders signed a petition within hours, with 680 signatures in the first 24 hours.

The rejected January version of the Draft Local Plan had set aside land for 1,500 homes on Canvey over the next 15 years The petition, set up by the Canvey Green Belt campaign, called for a new plan which recognised the risk of flood zones.

It called for a house building cap which would reduce the number of residents on the island at risk from floods.

The petition, which has now been signed by 1,726 people, will be presented to Castle Point Council by Mr Tucker at next Thursday’s meeting.