I was unable to join the work due to work commitments - how did it go?

As a resident of Whaley AND the son of parents who live in Hayfield I'm watching both planning applications with interest.

The site listed in Hayfield has a similar profile to that of Whaley Bridge in terms of pressure on the both the road infrastructure and the local amenities. It is a smaller area and further away from a major A road but the impact on Kinder Road residents will be similar to that of Macc Road, it will simply put too many vehicles on a road designed in an age of horse and cart. As with WB they are proposing to build on land that will encourage water to run off and put more pressure on rivers and streams in the local area, the river already floods houses in the centre of Hayfield so it remains to be seen what they have planned for that....

Yes we need new housing, yes we want affordable housing, yes we want our communities to have a spread of both age an economic background, no we don't wish to sacrifice our countryside, no we don't wish to cram our roads with vehicles, no we don't want our children's schools crammed to overflowing.......

I think we just want to be listened to, don't we?

I'm not convinced that anywhere has been suggested that is 100% correct!

The issues regarding vehicle access push the emphasis to the Bridgemont end of Whaley but this brings with it issues to do with transportation to the schools, no one wishes to walk anymore so naturally cars will end up travelling through Whaley to drop pupils at the primary schools, more parking required in near the schools (not really possible). The pupils numbers already seem to suggest that our schools are full so investment is required in them to accommodate more pupils (unlikely to be forthcoming). I haven't seen the figures for the surgeries in the area but if other posters are to be believed then the surgeries are near capacity, further investment required there then.....

In short I'm wondering how, at our current size, the town is expected to support more housing? Is Whaley Bridge best suited to housing investment? Do other towns in the area have a capacity to soak up additional population?

Do we actually need to accept that either....
a) we need more housing if we want our children to stay in Whaley when they grow up or
b) the housing we have is sufficient or we wish to remain how we are for ever and a day?

The impact on me personally will be minimal, I commute from Whaley at my leisure (as I'm my own boss) so traffic is of little concern, in fact truth be known the more traffic there is the slower they travel and subsequently the slower the accidents will be.
My family all have places at the dentist and doctor so I'm alright Jack...
My child will be at a school but will have left by the time the major pressure arrives (if it does at all)

I am clearly better at asking questions than answering them, I guess that's why I'm not in the planning department. I do know that I am sat on the side of the anti Linglongs development but I haven't been completely convinced by every argument against. As for other sites around Whaley, I'm unsure where there is enough space or access for something the size of a Linglongs development, do we look at adding housing in small patches? Gisbourne Yard obviously has a vote from me (if you know my history on here.....) The land at the old gasworks has potential, the land next to Tesco, the area at the end of Bridge Street..... There are patches all around but do we wish to fill ALL our spare space, I'm pretty sure we don't.

Has anyone else come up with a viable alternative? Do we NEED one?

New estates bring in new buyers, a big promotional push and professional, dedicated salesmen/women will see houses being sold, they concentrate on selling one housing estate not the whole SK23 area like an estate agent does. Developers of large estates aren't really worried about empty properties in the locale unless it's whole estates that stand empty. There is an argument about how many properties are currently on the market but as our estate agents are still in business (two are anyway) I'd suggest houses are selling.

School buildings can be extended and built but who funds the staff? Developers only do short term investment in bricks and mortar not twenty or thirty years salary for staff sadly.

The road issue is one that blights our whole nation. if you expand the network you encourage people to drive more. if you don't expand it then everyone complains about the congestion. Catch 22.

I'd suggest a bypass from Macc's Silk Road over the hills through the valley down across the reservoir, over the railway drop a spur down into Bingswood and then over to the A6....... ducks for cover...... Sorry Reservoir Road residents but I'm going to wreck the view.....

I'm pretty sure I can walk faster than a car, they can't walk........ I'll get my coat on the way out.......