Analysis

The build-up to the Parish Council meeting on Monday 7 Apr 2025 at 6:30pm couldn’t have been more dramatic. That Saturday morning back in February where the Village was told that the planning pre-application had been paused. The tense exchanges at the last CPC meeting. Will the latest episode of this drama live up to it’s billing? Here’s what to look out for:

Since CCLT was launched, residents of Chilbolton have had the opportunity to sign up as members. But what rights and responsibilities do the official rules confer?

Back in December at the big Village meeting, it was claimed that residents in the unmade section of Drove Road would be “grateful” if it were to be tarmacked over. chilbolton.news went to find out.

The work to establish Chilbolton Community Land Trust (CCLT) is underway. Community Land Trusts are an international phenomenon, that started in the United States. Here in the UK there are various ways of incorporating one, but the SWG have indicated that “CLT will be a charity (but regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, rather than the Charities Commission)”. This suggests that CCLT will be what is known as a Charitable Community Benefit Society (CCBS).

Social factors and economic policy have driven higher demand for home ownership and higher house prices. Affordable housing provides homes at lower cost for people whose income won’t stretch to local market rates. How that is done in the UK, though, is complex.