One of the major items up for discussion at this month’s Cabinet meeting is progress on the new Local Development Plan (LDP). The LDP will set out how land will be used in Bridgend until 2033 (pdf).
The main changes from the previous draft LDP are:
- The Parc Afon Ewenni housing development has been dropped (more on this later as it has wider implications) and the number of homes the plan provides has been cut slightly from around 9,500 to 8,590.
- Land for up to 255 homes to the west of Heol Fach and Heol Maendy in North Cornelly has been added to the LDP.
- A proposed traveller site next to the Bryncethin depot has been removed.
- The LDP now notes the Porthcawl placemaking plan, published at the end of 2021.
Homes “not being built fast enough in Bridgend”
Although the overall number of homes proposed for Bridgend has been cut by almost 1,000, the commentary in the report suggests houses aren’t being built fast enough in Bridgend.
Officers say that 2,920 fewer homes were built than originally planned for in the previous LDP (9,690), missing the allocation by 30%.
The Covid-19 pandemic may have played a part, but it’s also said that while the previous LDP has resulted in some key brownfield sites being brought forward for development, some have been more difficult to deliver.
Health board believes services can cope with LDP plans
One of the main concerns from residents, whenever the LDP or housing is discussed, is the pressure it puts on local services – particularly health – given ever-lengthening waiting times.
In an accompanying appendix (pdf), Cwm Taf Morgannwg health board has pointed toward several proposals to help meet demand:
- Bridgend Wellness Village, Sunnyside – The proposed (and long delayed) primary care centre will relocate several GP practices, clinics and health board services under one roof. It’s been designed to serve up to 23,000 patients (the current registered population of the respective GP practices being 15,000).
- Extensions to North Cornelly, Heathbridge (Kenfig Hill) and Tyn-y-Coed (Sarn) GP surgeries.
- A possible new primary care centre to serve Pencoed and Llanharan – The health board is working with the surgeries to identify a new long-term premises, but they believe the two existing sites can cope with expected numbers from proposed housing developments in the area for at least 5 years.
It’s not all “good news”, of course. The health board identifies problems with dental service capacity in the Pencoed area and is currently negotiating a new dental contract with the Welsh Government to meet this demand.
There’s no mention of the impact on acute services at the Princess of Wales Hospital, though the report says that the general policy is to try to “keep patients out of hospital and supported within their own homes as much as possible.”
“Parc Afon Ewenni” housing plans dropped
As mentioned, one of the biggest changes to the proposed LDP is that the proposed Parc Afon Ewenni housing development has been dropped.
Since the early 2010s, Parc Afon Ewenni has been listed as a key brownfield regeneration site, but recent flood mapping has prompted planning officers to de-list it. It’s now proposed to only be used for business and employment.
The decision could impact Welsh-medium education plans. Parc Afon Ewenni was supposed to be served by a new dual-stream school. It’ll either have to be built elsewhere (or capacity increased at existing schools) if the council are going to meet their Welsh-medium targets. It also, potentially, will result in a recently-approved walking and cycling link effectively going nowhere when it was designed to be future-proofed to meet the needs of the housing development.
An update to the Cabinet on the future of Parc Afon Ewenni is pencilled in for September. Presumably, we’ll know more then.
