West Northamptonshire Local Plan regulation consultation final response

Response date 13 April 2026

Our main comments

West Northamptonshire Council proposes to meet its housing and employment needs through the Local Plan. The plan concentrates much of the proposed growth in Northampton.

Our response asks West Northamptonshire Council to:

• improve public transport and active travel links between Brackley, Ardley and Bicester
• assess how development at Brackley and Towcester could affect roads in Oxfordshire
• work with us on cross-border education provision
• give more information about different sources of flood risk
• strengthen parts of the plan concerning health and wellbeing
• strengthen policies on net zero development and climate resilience

Public transport and active travel

Public transport connections between Brackley and Oxfordshire are limited. The response asks for better links between Brackley and the railway stations at Bicester.

Our rail strategy supports a proposed railway station at Ardley. This would be the closest station to Brackley if it opens.

We have asked West Northamptonshire Council to identify public transport and active travel links between Brackley and Ardley in the Local Plan. This includes connections to the proposed greenway.

Effects on Oxfordshire roads

We are concerned about the combined effects of development at Brackley and Towcester on the highway network.

Our response identifies possible effects on:

• the A442 towards Banbury
• junction 11 of the M40
• the A43 south of Brackley
• junction 10 of the M40 at Baynards Green

Transport modelling should also consider planned and proposed development at Bicester. We want to be involved in future discussions about these roads.

Rail connections

We support planning development near existing public transport corridors, including railway stations.

The response also supports using East West Rail for passenger and freight services.

We support the longer-term proposal to restore the railway between Northampton and Market Harborough. This would need an assessment of environmental effects and suitable measures to address them.

Education

Some schools in Oxfordshire and West Northamptonshire serve children who live in the neighbouring council area.

Significant housing development near the county border could affect school places and school transport. We have asked to be involved from the start when West Northamptonshire Council plans education provision.

Flood risk

We have asked for clearer information about flood risk in the Local Plan.

This could include:

• surface water flood risk
• flood risk from rivers and the sea
• records of previous flooding
• groundwater flood risk
• relevant flood investigation reports

Health and wellbeing

We welcome the plan's objective to consider health and wellbeing from the start.

We have asked West Northamptonshire Council to consider a full Health Impact Assessment for the Local Plan. This would assess its combined effects on health and identify ways to reduce health inequalities.

Our detailed comments also cover:

• access to allotments and community food-growing spaces
• indoor air quality, damp, mould and overheating
• housing for key workers
• the long-term management of green and blue infrastructure
• monitoring the health effects of development

Climate change and sustainability

We support the plan's focus on net zero development. We have suggested changes to strengthen the policies.

These include:

• using carbon offsetting or off-site renewable energy only as a last resort
• requiring predictive energy modelling at the detailed planning stage
• assessing and reducing the carbon associated with construction
• considering wildlife and climate resilience when buildings are retrofitted
• supporting community-led renewable energy and nature recovery
• including a policy on the circular economy and waste hierarchy

Read the full response

The full response includes detailed comments on transport, rail, education, flood risk, public health and climate change.

Download our full West Northamptonshire Local Plan consultation response (pdf format, 650KB)

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