Yes

Representation ID: 97915

Received: 05/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Jonathan Stafford-scott

Best and most versatile agricultural land should be safeguarded for future food production needs
and is essential to ensure long-term agricultural sustainability. More home grown food should be promoted rather than allowing huge amounts of land to be used for meat production or growing food for animals. Better to switch this land to growing food for humans to reduce the green house emissions directly and indirectly.

No

Representation ID: 98034

Received: 05/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Barnabas Harrison

This Policy Direction is not sufficiently stringent, as SG24 appears to propose to construct infrastructure over an area of agricultural land which is highly productive and versatile. This is particularly applicable in the SG24 area between Stratford Road, Aylesbury Road, Box Trees Road, and Grange Road, where the proposed development site would result in building over multiple highly productive arable fields which have been effectively farmed for decades.

Yes

Representation ID: 98322

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Barry Elkington

Green Belt land which has rich soils for food production should be protected. Hence the value of agricultural land should have a higher rating in the assessment as this has a big economic impact as well as reducing the carbon footprint. (e.g. if we don’t grow our own food locally, we have to import it from abroad). At a national level, South Warwickshire has relatively little high quality land so it would be more appropriate for the harm to be regarded as Significant rather than Moderate. The benefits of building on this do not outweigh the harm.

No

Representation ID: 98327

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Barry Elkington

Green Belt land which has rich soils for food production should be protected. Hence the value of agricultural land should have a higher rating in the assessment as this has a big economic impact as well as reducing the carbon footprint. (e.g. if we don’t grow our own food locally, we have to import it from abroad). At a national level, South Warwickshire has relatively little high quality land so it would be more appropriate for the harm to be regarded as Significant rather than Moderate. The benefits of building on any of this do not outweigh the harm.

Yes

Representation ID: 98506

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Kim James

Support protecting the best and most versatile (BMV) agricultural land to ensure local food security, sustainability, and reduced reliance on imports.
Lower-grade land (Grades 3b, 4, and 5) is more suitable for non-food crops and renewable energy projects. However, strict protection may limit rural housing and infrastructure growth, requiring clear justification for any development on BMV land.
The cumulative loss of farmland should be monitored, with brownfield redevelopment prioritized. We advocate for balanced policies that support sustainable development, rural livelihoods, and environmental resilience, ensuring farmland remains a valuable long-term resource.

Yes

Representation ID: 98583

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Salford Priors Parish Council

Support protecting the best and most versatile (BMV) agricultural land to ensure local food security, sustainability, and reduced reliance on imports. Lower-grade land (Grades 3b, 4, and 5) is more suitable for non-food crops and renewable energy projects. However, strict protection may limit rural housing and infrastructure growth, requiring clear justification for any development on BMV land. The cumulative loss of farmland should be monitored, with brownfield redevelopment prioritised. We advocate for balanced policies that support sustainable development, rural livelihoods, and environmental resilience, ensuring farmland remains a valuable long-term resource.

Other

Representation ID: 98703

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mrs Alice Hibbert

Best and most versatile grade 3 agricultural land should be safeguarded for future food production needs and is essential to ensure long-term agricultural sustainability.

Yes

Representation ID: 98825

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Old Milverton and Blackdown Parish Council

We support these principles. It is important to remember that, where agricultural land exists within green belt land, it may be performing more than one important function. The valuable contribution of agricultural land should not be ignored in the face of nomination as green belt land; both statuses should be considered individually and with regard to their own distinct functions and purposes.

Yes

Representation ID: 99080

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Cotswold District Council

Support

Yes

Representation ID: 99217

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mr James Kennedy

Following recent controversies over planning for solar farms this DPD is to be welcomed. Combined with a strong mandate elsewhere in the plan to support rooftop solar PV on all new residential and other buildings this should provide a strong framework to drive forward local renewable energy generation in the most appropriate places. It needs to be combined with (presumably nationally agreed) measurement of the quality of agricultural land.

Yes

Representation ID: 99402

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Tania White

Refid 16 & Refid 562 are fields that are in active agricultural use. The value of agricultural land should play a bigger part in the assessment within the South Warwickshire Local Plan as this has a big economic impact as well as impacting carbon footprint . If we don’t grow our own food locally, we have to import it from abroad. We need to preserve food security.

No

Representation ID: 99642

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Afolabi Okeshola

I don't believe this goes far enough to protect agricultural land and our food security. Poor quality agricultural land could be made better.

There should, at the very least, be some consultation to check if the agricultural land can not be turned into good quality agricultural land before development can proceed.

Yes

Representation ID: 99696

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Ms Gillian Padgham

agree

No

Representation ID: 99881

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Jonathan Rawlings

ALL agricultural should be protected. If lower grade land can produce biomass then it can still produce food if farmed correctly.

Yes

Representation ID: 100096

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Steven Coulsting

I agree that the best and most versatile agricultural land should be protected from development. This is increasingly important in the view of producing more food locally to reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions and reduce reliance on other countries for imported food items that can be grown locally. Lower grade agricultural land may be used to cultivate non-food crops such as biomass or host solar farms.

No

Representation ID: 100121

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Welford on Avon Parish Council

Large scale renewable projects such as solar farms ruin the visual amenity of the countrisde and should not be allowed on agricultural land. Agro land should be used for food production/

They are an eyesore and are damaging to the communities that are close by.

Other

Representation ID: 100466

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Mrs Rebecca Loades

I agree, but I think there should be more consideration on solar farms on poor-quality agricultural land as solar farms will only make the land worse in the long-term.

Yes

Representation ID: 100481

Received: 06/03/2025

Respondent: Ms Aimee Carter

I wish to particularly emphasise the adherence of this in relation to SG04.
There is a large, connected expanse of land without roads that runs from the rear of the castle all the way through to where SG04 is proposed. The rural area, with minimal road infrastructure the then runs further across towards Leek Wootton / Beausale and Hatton.
This should be given a high priority for protection.

Yes

Representation ID: 100505

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Mrs Lorraine Grocott

Good agricultural land should be safeguarded for future food production needs.

Yes

Representation ID: 100553

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Andrew Newbould

na

Yes

Representation ID: 100561

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Mrs Vanessa Chivers

Developments such as X1 will not follow your agricultural land policy. It should be reviewed to stop both housing and industrial development.

Other

Representation ID: 100601

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Mrs Diana Heinrich

Agricultural land of all qualities should be protected at all cost as once gone cañnot be replaced. Poor agricultural land with old pasture supports biodiversity, CO2 observation, and often is associated with rivers or streams so tends to flood.

Other

Representation ID: 100749

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Gladman Developments

Any policy concerning the development of best and most versatile (BMV) agricultural land should be consistent with the requirements of the NPPF which makes clear at footnote 65 that where significant development of agricultural land is demonstrated to be necessary, areas of poorer quality land should be preferred to those of a higher quality.

Other

Representation ID: 100751

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Beausale, Hasely, Honiley & Wroxall Parish Council

Maybe
This draft policy fails to recognise that land not graded as BMV (3b to 5) can still produce valuable crops to feed our nation.
This statement needs to be stronger in protecting our agricultural land for food production.

No

Representation ID: 100846

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Mr Garry Rollason

The policy should protect all agricultural land as food security is becoming ever more important. The use of any agricultural land for renewable energy developments should not be permitted as there are more sustainable options. Solar panel in supermarket car parks for example - not only would panels produce energy they would provide shade in summer for cars.

No

Representation ID: 100878

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Ms Judy Steele

All agricultural land needs to be retained. It's vital to our food security. Categorisation of 3a and 3b are often fairly arbitrary. We need food as well as energy. Looking back at a second world war scenario dig for victory etc a lot of the land needed would now be covered in solar panels

Yes

Representation ID: 101159

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Rowington Landowner Consortium

Agent: Knight Frank LLP

The landowner consortium generally supports the approach outlined in Draft Policy Direction 49. The policy direction emphasises the protection of agricultural land, aligning with the NPPF (2024), which underscores the importance of preserving higher quality agricultural land.

The NPPF maintains that when significant development of agricultural land is necessary, areas of poorer quality should be preferred over those of higher quality. This principle is reflected in the Draft Policy Direction, which aims to safeguard the most productive agricultural areas from development pressures.

No

Representation ID: 101231

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Hallam Land Management Limited

Agent: Mr Jack Barnes

The principle of Draft Chapter 11 is supported, although the current draft policy directions are at this moment vague, and specific issues are raised with Draft Policy Directions as set out above.

No

Representation ID: 101385

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Bellway Strategic Land / Ashberry Strategic Land

Agent: Marrons

The principle of Draft Chapter 11 is supported, although the current draft policy directions are at this moment vague, and specific issues are raised with Draft Policy Directions as set out above.

Other

Representation ID: 101661

Received: 07/03/2025

Respondent: Miss Janet Neale

I believe the policy needs to be strengthened to make it much harder for working farms to be used as development opportunities.
We need to ensure fresh food security and should be supporting greater us of farm land for this purpose rather than seeing it as an easy solution to build housing.