Wokingham

Council chiefs have been warned they might not be able to stop developers building on greenfield sites from Winnersh to Spencers Wood because they are missing their house-building targets.

Tory-controlled Wokingham District Council must build at least 817 homes by the end of this financial year just to meet government targets.

And opposition councillors fear it will leave the district vulnerable if developers exploit the shortage by making them building offers they cannot refuse.

Lib Dem councillor Prue Bray said: "If we don't prove we have sufficient sites, developers can come along and demand permission to build on even more inappropriate sites.

"We're getting into a difficult situation and are desperately running out of time."

Planning leader Wokingham Cllr Gary Cowan told colleagues green-field developments are inevitable in order to meet the target set by the government.

The council has already earmarked reserve sites, including land off Poplar Lane, Winnersh, at Sandford Farm, Woodley, and in Spencers Wood, north of Hyde End Road and east of Basingstoke Road, which could be used to meet the shortfall.

Cllr Cowan said: "It should be noted that if we were to rule against the present sites identified in the Local Plan we would just have to choose other green-field sites to fill that void."

Until April Wokingham council was claiming it would not need to use its reserve sites because it had calculated a building surplus of five homes.

But the Housing Land Supply survey revealed the 817 shortfall, potentially increasing to 2,500 by 2016.

Lib Dem leader Coling Lawley said: "The Tory council has clearly mismanaged the issue of where the required government housing is to be built.

"By not arranging a sufficient supply of managed development land, developers will be able to win permission on appeal to build on land less favoured by the council.

"If we have to have the houses, the least the council can do is control where they go."

Wokingham Council leader Frank Browne said: "The council currently has to build just over 500 houses a year, as a result of the Lib Dems signing us up to 8,100 houses.

"Our officers have advised us that we are running out of time to meet that commitment and we need to carefully consider which of the reserve sites identified are released to enable us to meet the Lib Dems commitment."

Nov 3 2005 ~ icBerkshire