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Natural Basingstoke – Local Plan Nature Evidence Hub

UPDATE

New expert evidence raises important questions for Basingstoke’s Local Plan

Natural Basingstoke has submitted an updated response to Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council following new consultation evidence from key organisations, including the Environment Agency, Natural England, and South East Water.

This new information provides important insight into how water resources, flood risk, and environmental constraints may affect the Local Plan’s proposed growth strategy.

What’s changed?

Since the Regulation 18 consultation, several expert bodies have reviewed the draft Local Plan and highlighted a number of issues that require further consideration.

  • Water supply: South East Water has identified that parts of the proposed growth may exceed current supply assumptions, with existing pressures already affecting the local system.
  • Environmental impact: Natural England has raised concerns about ongoing abstraction affecting important habitats such as Greywell Fen and nearby chalk streams.
  • Flood risk: The Environment Agency has objected to aspects of the plan, noting that more detailed flood risk assessment work is still required.

Why does this matter?

The Local Plan sets out where development will take place across the borough. It is important that decisions about the scale and location of growth are based on a clear understanding of environmental limits and infrastructure capacity.

The new evidence suggests that some of these constraints are not yet fully resolved. In particular, there is a risk that development could be planned ahead of confirmed solutions for water supply, wastewater infrastructure, and flood risk.

This does not mean development cannot take place. However, it does highlight the importance of ensuring that the Local Plan is supported by robust evidence and that environmental constraints are fully taken into account at an early stage.

What has Natural Basingstoke done?

Natural Basingstoke has submitted a supplementary response to the Council. This builds on our original Regulation 18 submission and explains how the new evidence strengthens our concerns.

In particular, we have asked the Council to:

  • Review and update the Water Cycle Study to reflect the latest water resource evidence
  • Complete further flood risk assessment work before the next stage of the plan
  • Clearly explain how environmental constraints have shaped the Local Plan strategy
  • Ensure that development is phased in line with infrastructure capacity and environmental limits

What happens next?

The Local Plan will move to its next stage (Regulation 19) following review of consultation responses. This is an important opportunity for the Council to address the issues raised and ensure that the final plan is robust and deliverable.

Natural Basingstoke will continue to engage constructively with the Council to support a Local Plan that provides for new homes while protecting and restoring our natural environment.

Stay informed

If you would like to follow updates on the Local Plan and our work, follow us on social media.

How You Can Help

Take action today:

Read Natural Basingstoke’s full detailed response here.

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Why we are calling for a stronger, more nature-positive Local Plan

Natural Basingstoke fully supports the need for new homes in our area. But to protect the borough’s natural environment, the draft Local Plan must be strengthened.

This page summarises the environmental evidence that underpins our petition. It reflects early analysis carried out by our volunteer team, with support from ecological data, national datasets and local expertise.

We will continue to refine and expand this evidence, including more detailed mapping and modelling, in the lead-up to our formal consultation response.

1. Chalk Streams: Globally Rare and Already Under Pressure

Basingstoke and Deane contains the headwaters of the River Loddon, Test and Itchen — some of the rarest river systems on Earth.

Our early review of the Local Plan evidence shows that:

  • Several large proposed development sites lie within wastewater catchments already under strain, where river health is failing or close to failing national ecological standards.
  • Additional wastewater loading from new development could increase pressure on these rivers unless significant upgrades are secured and timed correctly.
  • The draft Local Plan does not yet show clearly how these risks have been assessed.

Why this matters:
Chalk streams are extremely sensitive. Pollution or hydrological change can cause long-lasting damage, and once ecological quality declines, it is very difficult to recover. At a time when our rivers are already under significant pressure, unduly adding even more pressure could have disastrous effects.

2. Wildlife Corridors and Natural Green Spaces

Using Natural England’s Priority Habitat Inventory, Hampshire’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS), and Basingstoke’s own Green Infrastructure Strategy, our early mapping work indicates that:

  • Several proposed development areas intersect with or fragment key wildlife corridors linking woodland, hedgerows, grassland and river habitats.
  • These corridors are essential for species movement and climate resilience.
  • The draft Local Plan does not yet show how these networks will be protected or restored.

Why this matters:
Once a corridor is severed, the local ecological network weakens — reducing biodiversity not just at a single site, but across the wider landscape.

3. Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) Not Fully Reflected

The Environment Act 2021 requires councils to use Local Nature Recovery Strategies to guide plan-making.

Our review found that:

  • The draft Local Plan does not yet fully integrate the LNRS habitat and corridor mapping.
  • Some proposed sites overlap with priority areas for nature recovery, potentially undermining county-wide ecological goals.

We believe the LNRS should be used consistently to help identify lower-risk locations for growth and high-value areas that should be protected.

4. Water, Flooding and Wastewater Pressures

Our initial analysis of environmental and hydrological data suggests that:

  • Some large development sites sit in areas with constrained wastewater capacity, raising uncertainty about infrastructure timing and river impacts.
  • Parts of the borough include flood-sensitive landscapes and groundwater recharge zones, which require careful planning to avoid increasing flood risk.
  • The Sustainability Appraisal does not yet consistently reflect these combined pressures.

We are currently preparing more detailed GIS mapping to explore these risks at site and catchment scale.

5. This Is Not an Anti-Development Campaign

Natural Basingstoke wants to see homes built:

  • in the right places,
  • with the right environmental safeguards,
  • alongside a connected network of green and blue corridors,
  • and with strong protections for chalk streams and priority habitats.

Our position is constructive: we support growth that works with nature, not against it.

6. Work in Progress — Ongoing Data and Mapping

This page reflects our initial, high-level findings.

Over the coming weeks, we will add:

  • Updated biodiversity and habitat maps
  • Corridor connectivity modelling
  • Chalk stream buffer assessments
  • Flood and groundwater overlays
  • Wastewater capacity analysis
  • Site-by-site ecological sensitivity summaries

All of this detailed evidence will appear in our formal Reg 18 consultation response, which we will publish publicly for transparency.

How You Can Help

We encourage residents to:

  1. Sign the petition to strengthen the Local Plan.
  2. Submit your own consultation response using our simple template letter.
  3. Share this page so the community can see the evidence behind the campaign.

Together we can help ensure Basingstoke builds the homes it needs without losing the nature that makes this borough special.