Alok Sharma, the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Reading West, and local Councillors Joe Mooney, Emma Webster and Tony Linden, recently organised a survey of local residents across Tilehurst, Calcot and Theale to canvass their views on a potential 700-900 home development by Blue Living at the Pincents Hill site.

Around 900 local residents responded to the Survey and the key findings were as follows:
 

• 87% of respondents felt that the Government’s housing target of a minimum of 10,500 homes between 2006-2026 for West Berkshire was not reasonable nor acceptable to existing local residents


• A massive 85% of respondents want NO development at all on the Pincents Hill Site


• 96% of the respondents are concerned about the impact of traffic from any development


• 87% are concerned about the loss of a green space


• 86% are concerned about the pressure on local public services such as education


• 82% are worried about the impact of development on the environment and wildlife

Blue Living subsequently put out a statement questioning the “impartiality and objectivity” of the survey and also questioned “the robustness of the survey’s methodology and statistical conclusions”.

Alok Sharma and local councillors have responded to Blue Living’s Associate Director Jonny Anstead as follows:

“Dear Mr. Anstead

Re: Pincents Hill Survey


 

Thank you for your statement responding to the results of our Pincents Hill Survey. I am sorry that you did not like the results of the survey and the clear message from 900 local people:
No Development at Pincents Hill!


 

To date, all Blue Living has offered to local people is a cocktail of gibberish in all your literature. The comment in your statement: "At Pincents Hill we aim to create a place which has a strong community, a sense of belonging and shared identity" is absolutely typical of Blue Living "developer speak"! We already have a strong local community, which is why so many local people are united to stop your development plans!


 

Please do go back to the comments from local residents which we received on the survey - you can download the Survey Results document from our website at www.readingwestconservatives.com. There are hundreds of comments expressing real concerns about the impact on local roads, the environment and public services such as schools and doctors' surgeries, if your development goes ahead.


 

The vast majority of local people do not want the Pincents Hill site to be developed because they are fed up of unsustainable development being dumped on them in the name of Government housing targets. However, Blue Living would at least gain some respect if you addressed the real issues which concern people about this proposed development:


 

1. Will Blue Living commit to providing the required level of funding to set up new schools, new doctors' surgeries and improve basic transport infrastructure in the local area and will you provide a cast iron guarantee that you will not try at a later date to wriggle out of such commitments?


 

2. Local roads are already clogged up with traffic so how do you propose local people cope with thousands of extra cars on the road at peak times if your development goes ahead?

3. How can local people ever be compensated for the loss of valuable green space?


 

4. How will local wildlife, which will inevitably be displaced by your proposed development, cope with all the changes in their habitat?


 

You can describe a 900 home development, plonked inappropriately into a beautiful green space, with any sugar-coated words you like but the simple truth is that the vast majority of local people do not want any development at Pincents Hill. Please, just try and understand that simple fact.


 

Yours sincerely,

Alok Sharma Parliamentary Spokesman for Reading West                                                                   

Councillors Joe Mooney, Emma Webster, Tony Linden”


 

Alok Sharma commented: “We are more determined than ever to stop Blue Living’s development plans. The vast majority of local people just do not want any development on the Pincents Hill site and standing shoulder to shoulder with our local residents we will fight this one all the way.”