The Northern Area Planning Committee of Wiltshire Council was scheduled to consider two major planning applications. The first was an outline planning application for up to 135 dwellings on land north of Swindon Road, Royal Wootton Bassett. The second was a reserved matters application for 90 homes on land off Spitfire Road, Calne, which also included the discharge of several pre-commencement conditions from a previous outline permission.

Land North of Swindon Road, Royal Wootton Bassett

The Northern Area Planning Committee was scheduled to consider an outline planning application for up to 135 dwellings on land north of Swindon Road, Royal Wootton Bassett. The application, which reserved all matters except for access, was scheduled to include the creation of a new vehicular access from Swindon Road, provision of open space, and associated infrastructure.

The report pack indicated that officers were recommending that planning permission be granted, subject to conditions and the completion of a Section 106 legal agreement. This agreement was scheduled to secure a range of contributions, including 40% affordable housing (54 units), contributions towards early years, primary, and secondary education places, bus service improvements, bus stop upgrades, public rights of way improvements, M4 Junction 16 improvements, highway upgrades, cycleway contributions, onsite play areas, and contributions towards sports ground upgrades.

The report highlighted that the site was unallocated and located outside the defined settlement boundary of Royal Wootton Bassett, which conflicted with Core Policies 1, 2, and 19 of the Wiltshire Core Strategy and Saved Policy H4 of the North Wiltshire Local Plan. However, it was noted that Wiltshire Council could only demonstrate a 2.8-year housing land supply, a significant shortfall that attracted substantial weight as a material consideration in favour of housing delivery. The report stated that Policy S5(1)(j)(i) of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) was scheduled to provide explicit support for development outside settlement boundaries under such circumstances, provided the site was physically well-related to an existing settlement and could be accommodated by infrastructure. Officers were scheduled to be satisfied that these criteria were met.

Concerns raised by Lydiard Tregoze Parish Council and Royal Wootton Bassett Town Council regarding the principle of development, landscape impact, heritage, highways, and sustainability were scheduled to be addressed in the report. The report also detailed considerations for design, visual impact, residential amenity, heritage assets, highway safety, drainage, flood risk, protected species, and environmental impacts.

Land off Spitfire Road, Calne

The Committee was also scheduled to consider a reserved matters application for the demolition of existing structures and the construction of 90 homes on land off Spitfire Road, Calne. This application also included the discharge of several conditions from a previous outline planning permission, relating to the boundary with Abberd Fields Farm, surface water drainage, a construction ecological management plan, and a noise assessment.

The report indicated that the reserved matters application was recommended for approval, subject to 16 further conditions, and that the details submitted for conditions 7, 8, 9, and 18 were also recommended for approval, subject to additional conditions. This application had been deferred from a previous committee meeting on 12 August 2026 to allow for revisions to the scheme.

The revised scheme was scheduled to address concerns raised by the committee regarding a less cramped, lower-density, and more landscape-led layout, better integrated public and green spaces, improved streets and parking to prioritise pedestrians, a softer transition to the countryside, and strengthened local identity through architecture and materials. The issue of a formal pedestrian crossing on Spitfire Road was also scheduled to be reassessed.

The report detailed the assessment of the reserved matters concerning access, scale, layout, external appearance, and landscaping. It noted that the principle of development for 90 homes had already been established through an outline planning permission granted on appeal in February 2025. The reserved matters application was scheduled to detail the design aspects of the development, including housing mix, parking, street hierarchy, public open space, and architectural treatment.

Concerns raised by Calne Town Council and Compton Bassett Parish Council regarding density, green space provision, street scene, pedestrian safety, parking strategy, and drainage were scheduled to be addressed. The report also noted representations regarding potential odour issues from a nearby landfill site, which had been considered during the outline planning stage and were not scheduled to be a reason for refusal at this reserved matters stage.

The report concluded that the revised reserved matters application was scheduled to be considered acceptable and in line with the development plan and the approved outline permission.