Developer plans 555 new homes on countryside site

Developers want to build more than 500 new homes on countryside in Bristol.

Bellway Homes plans to construct 555 houses in Brislington, off the A4 Bath Road next to Brislington Park and Ride.

Between 170 to 220 of the new homes would be classed as "affordable", and the nearby allotments would be kept.

A planning application has not yet been made and some local councillors warn building on green belt is "unacceptable" and will risk "urban sprawl" between Bristol and Keynsham.

The 38-acre (15-hectare) site is owned by Bellway Strategic Land, which is part of homes builder Bellway Homes.

Bristol City Council has included the site in its draft Local Plan document, which sets out where huge new developments in the city should be built over the next few years.

Fergus Thomas, strategic land director for Bellway's central region, said: "Bristol's housing shortage is creating a crisis of affordability, with 18,000 people currently on the city's housing waiting list. That number is growing rapidly.

"Our plans are at an early stage and we will work with the community as we progress them. The identification of this site in the Local Plan is one of the first steps."

Bellway has asked the council for details about carrying out an environmental impact assessment and no formal planning application has been made yet, according to The Local Democracy Reporting Service.

But some local councillors are warning the development would mean the loss of important countryside, risking "continuous urban sprawl" in between Bristol and Keynsham.

Liberal Democrat councillor Andrew Varney, representing Brislington West, said: "We completely support brownfield redevelopment, but believe building on our precious green belt is unacceptable.

"It's pretty obvious that developers will try to build on our greenfield sites first as they are less problematic and less expensive than brownfield sites.

"We need to find a way to make sure that our brownfield sites are developed first, and the best way to do this is to remove all greenfield sites from the Local Plan."

Bellway Homes says it will create new wildlife habitats and is in the early stages of getting permission from Bristol City Council for their building plans.

Follow BBC West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]