If you’ve been reading anything from me recently you’ll know my village of Charfield has been selected as sacrificial dumping ground – sorry, a strategic development location – for another 1200 homes. And you’ll know I feel strongly that this cannot be made a sustainable choice because of the road network in the area being wholly inadequate to cater for so many dwellings where the car is essential for accessing employment, health services and shops. But already we have construction in the village, with 106 homes emerging on the Crest Nicholson site and, now, 64 at Day House Leaze being built by Bellway Homes – the so-called St James’s Mews (although St James’s is actually in Churchend and the site is close by the perhaps less romantically named St John’s church)
Whether or not you believe the village can take expansion this, Bellway Homes, is not welcome:
These photos were taken over two consecutive days, yesterday and today, one day sunny and one damp; the main Wotton Road is coated in mud and large stones are scattered across both the road and the pedestrian footway. Adjacent the construction site is Charfield Primary School, and each day small children are walking past at real risk of being struck by stones and gravel and of course mud. This Sunday, the whole village is due to turn out to process to the War Memorial for the Act of Remembrance, and it may be that we have to cancel because of the risks inherent in a mud coated route.
The Parish Council has contacted Bellway Homes as yet to no avail, and has contacted South Gloucestershire Enforcement and StreetCare (who may wash down the road and re-bill to Bellway Homes), but nothing is happening fast enough. Today I contacted the HSE and reported the company for alleged breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, since their acts and omissions are putting the public at risk. I’ve had enough already, and as Councillor for the village I am asked to put up with twenty more years of this?!!!
Rosher.Net 
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