Bradley Thomas MP is urging residents to submit their objections to plans to build up to 700 homes on Bromsgrove Golf Centre.
It follows Blenheim Strategic Partners LLP formally submitting their planning application to Bromsgrove District Council.
The site has been identified in Bromsgrove District Council’s draft Local Plan after the Government increased Bromsgrove and the Village’s housing target by 85%.
Bromsgrove District is 89% greenbelt and 79% rural, but the Government has made the decision to reduce Birmingham’s target by 31% – despite the city having at least 140 hectares of brownfield land that could be built on.
Bradley joined forces with Bromsgrove Golf Club last year to oppose the Golf Centre being included in the draft Local Plan.
Bromsgrove Golf Club is open to the public and has more than 1,000 members. It’s also thought to be home to the largest junior academy in England.
It’s also believed the course boasts more than 25,000 trees – all of which are under threat from potential housing developments.
Bradley visited the Golf Centre again on Tuesday (July 28th) where he met with Bromsgrove Golf Club’s former Gentlemen’s Club Captain, Lee Machin, as part of his work to oppose the planning application for up to 700 homes.
Bradley said: “Our worst fears have come true, and now we must do everything we can to stop this much-loved golf course being lost to housing forever.
“The promised investment in infrastructure is not enough. Bromsgrove needs a new high school, and without one a further 700 houses will place enormous pressure on Bromsgrove’s already oversubscribed high schools.
“We know our road network also won’t be able to cope. BREP was designed well before the Golf Centre was identified for housing. In my view this renders BREP completely useless as it doesn’t factor in the hundreds and hundreds of extra cars that will be on our roads if this planning application is approved.
“If you’re opposed to this planning application, I urge you to submit your objections to Bromsgrove District Council.”
Former Club Gentleman’s Captain, Lee Machin, added: “The potential development of 700+ houses to replace the Bromsgrove Golf Centre facilities is harmful to Bromsgrove’s community and poses a real risk, as it can never be replaced.
“The Centre not only serves as a Golf Course and a pathway into the sport but also a social hub for the whole community.
“The A38 will simply not be able to cope with this increased traffic, neighbouring Golf Clubs cannot accommodate the scale of members we have, there would be a massive health and wellbeing impact, the environmental damage, local infrastructure (i.e. schools/doctors) will be impacted and not to mention this application breaches the NPPF’s own building guidelines.
“We need support from everyone that feels this development should not happen, and to show Bromsgrove District Council this planning application must be refused.”
Responses can be submitted to the application on Bromsgrove District Council’s Planning Portal website using the reference 26/00779/OUT.
Bradley is continuing his fight to save Bromsgrove and the Village’s greenbelt with his petition that demands the Government builds houses on brownfield land first.
According to the latest “State of Brownfield 2025” report from the CPRE, there is enough brownfield land capacity in England to support a minimum of 1.41 million new homes, of which 55% already have full or in-principle planning permission.
There are also more than 1 million empty homes in England. Bradley’s petition calls on the Government to set out a strategy to bring these properties back into long-term use.
The petition also demands that, when houses are built in the right locations, they should only be built when the accompanying infrastructure is provided.
Residents can sign Bradley’s brownfield first petition by visiting: www.bradleythomas.org.uk/campaigns/build-brownfield-first-and-bring-empty-homes-back-use.
