CARE – Conserve Adisham’s Rural Environment – is an action group based in the Parish of Adisham near Canterbury, active when there is a major threat to the countryside or the rural character of the village. We are non party-political.
CARE is campaigning for the removal of the 3,200 house ‘Community Garden Scheme’ (R1) from Canterbury City Council's draft 2045 Local Plan. Since the plan was first published in Autumn 2022, there has been a consultation period ("regulation 18"), a Local Election and a change in who runs the council. The plan is being redrafted; we're yet to discover what is in the new version.
CARE is additional to our Parish Council, who have been in contact with the neighbouring parishes also concerned about this new town.
We're also supporting our neighbour Womenswold in its opposition of an estate of at least 420 houses, due to be shoe-horned into their parish (R20). This development is directly adjacent to site SAP24, an even larger development in Dover District Council's local plan, meaning 1,060 housing units would be built in the area.
CARE will:
- Continue to respond in detail to all relevant consultations.
- Help and encourage individuals to respond in their own words. (Remember: you don't have to live in Adisham or even Canterbury to comment on the plan.)
- Make a well-argued, rational case to the crucial Examination In Public (EiP) - still expected sometime in 2024. This is where CCC’s plan will be assessed for ‘soundness’ by an independent inspector, appointed by the Secretary of State.
- Raise money to employ a specialist consultant/advocate to put our case to the inquiry and to cross examine CCC’s witnesses.
- Campaign throughout this period to persuade the public of our case and attempt to persuade CCC to drop its Adisham new town proposal (R1 in the plan) and the estate at Womenswold (R20).