News and views

In January this year, the council’s planning committee approved an application for 203 homes on the site at Acorn Farm on Horsebridge Hill, with many to be taken on by a housing association and the rest to be available for keyworkers. I met recently with the developer to discuss how building work will be taken forward and to ensure that they engage with residents proactively throughout the process. In particular, I highlighted the importance of minimising the disruption that construction of a junction at the entrance to the new estate will have on traffic on Parkhurst Road and Horsebridge Hill.

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It was good to see temporary repairs to the potholes around the gullies on Forest Road, having taken these up with Island Roads. They tell me that proper repairs should take place soon.

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With the general election being called for 4 July, I’m urging residents to check that they are registered to vote. The deadline for this election is Tuesday, 18 June. You can register online. You’ll need your national insurance number. It should only take about five minutes. This is also the first general election in which voters will have to take photo-ID. Accepted forms of ID include: If you’re not going to be able to vote in person such as being on holiday or away for work, then you don’t have to miss out – just get a postal vote for this election. If you don’t want to use the online links you can visit the council’s Electoral Services at County…

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I’ve been in touch with Forestry England about the potholes on the entrance to the Parkhurst Forest car park. They seem to have got deeper in recent weeks. Forestry England have responded positively about getting this sorted out. Hopefully, this will be soon as the forest gets more use as summer approaches.

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[Adapted from a write-up by Cllr Michael Lilley.] Together with most Isle of Wight councillors of all parties, I voted at the Full Council meeting on 15 May 2024 for all sewage discharges into the sea and watercourses to end by 2030. Cllr Michael Lilley had put the original motion to full council in January 2024 after instigating a petition for IW Council to take action in December 2023 after horrific flooding in Ryde and across the Isle of Wight which included sewage discharges on our beaches and into the sea. Time ran out on the night and Michael withdrew the motion so there could be more work on it. He worked closely with my Lib Dem colleague, Cllr Sarah…

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At its meeting on 1 May 2024, Isle of Wight Council agreed to take the draft Island Planning Strategy to its next step. This will be a statutory consultation with residents. The draft strategy sets out the overall approach towards future development on the Island and the policies to be used in assessing planning applications. The draft plan includes policies that mean that: The plan balances social, economic and environmental issues and fronts up to some difficult decisions such as planning for 453 homes per year until 2037 — although 2,358 of these homes across 44 different sites already have planning permission. By allocating just 24 more sites that don’t already have permission for the next 15 years, the plan…

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