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%&'*+ -&-&%* %&'*+ -&-&(% Thursday, December 17 - Wednesday, December 23, 2015
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FREE INSIDE THIS ISSUE Councillors
WEEKEND
One man’s mile of burpees for charity
split over devolution proposals
TV GUIDE
www.basingstokeobserver.co.uk
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FORMER HOSPITAL LAND CHOSEN FOR SELF-BUILD PROJECT Hero Trish riding high
DUMMER-BASED volunteer Trish Willats is set to attend the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards this Sunday. She will go up against 14 equally
deserving candidates for the BBC Get Inspired Unsung Hero award in Belfast after being named winner of the BBC South Unsung Hero award. Trish is being recognised for her
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fantastic work training riders as part of the Wellington and Dummer branch of horse riding charity Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA). See page 3 for full story.
A PROPOSED housing development on land near a former Basingstoke hospital has been selected as a national pilot for a large-scale custom build homes project. Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council is currently considering an application to build 122 new houses in The Spinney next to the Park Prewett Hospital site off Aldermaston Road. And the project is now due to take on even higher significance after being chosen to front the government’s custom build model, which will see plots provided by a private contractor to create a mixture of individually designed and self-built homes. A total of 44 plots have also been allocated for affordable housing as part of the project, with Housing Minister Brandon Lewis voicing his hope that it would serve as a “fantastic example” to help get more people on the housing ladder. He said: “This government is committed to increasing housing supply and helping more people achieve their aspiration of home ownership – whether that’s buying on the open market through schemes like Help to Buy, or to build. “We want to see custom and self-build grow and believe
By Christian Wilson christian@observergroup.co.uk
it can play a role as part of a wider package of measures to help deliver homes people want. “The Park Prewett pilot is a fantastic example of our commitment to double the number of custom build and self-build homes by 2020 – so anyone who wishes to design their dream house can do so.” As previously reported in the Observer, 850 homes have to be built each year by the borough council until 2029 as part of its draft local plan. And deputy leader Cllr Terri Reid has admitted that she was “open to any innovative suggestions”. With the authority also weighing up the possibility of using pre-fabricated housing to tackle the area’s homes problem, the cabinet member for housing and regeneration was quick to praise the idea of the custom build project. Cllr Reid said: “The council is very keen to work with partners to support innovative new opportunities which increase the supply of housing.” • Continues on page 3
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