Our Vision for Cherwell 2042
The Cherwell Local Plan will ensure that by 2042:
- We achieve our climate action targets and new developments are built to the highest possible energy efficient standards.
- The Plan has supported a sustainable, flexible and resilient economy that is vibrant, inclusive with good transport links and sound infrastructure, supported by excellent educational facilities to foster the workforce skills required for the future. The economy has grown to provide more diverse employment for our increasing population and reduce the need for our residents to travel outside the district for work.
- Our district will build on its economic success, take full advantage of new technologies and the green economy. By sharing knowledge and common resources take an important role in the regional and national economy, whilst fostering and retaining young talent, attracting business and investment and reducing poverty, inequality, and social isolation.
- There is a choice of well-designed market and truly affordable homes to meet our needs and neighbourhoods are sustainable, safe, healthy, vibrant and cohesive communities, that promote good health, wellbeing and equality and seek to address the challenges of our growing and ageing communities.
- Working with our partners, investment in social and physical infrastructure related to development is timely. Residents of new development have convenient access to excellent health, social care, education, green open spaces, sport and recreational activities. The Plan has helped to reduce inequalities in health, address poverty and social inclusion and supported wellbeing.
- Our distinctive natural and built environment and our rich heritage is cherished, protected and enhanced. Cherwell maintains its rural character where its landscapes, its vast range of natural and built heritage and its market towns define its distinctiveness.
- The district’s biodiversity resource is enhanced. Our natural environment is more diverse. Social, economic and ecological resilience provides the capacity to adapt to change, including minimising flood risk. Our heritage assets, visitor economy and vibrant cultural offer are further enhanced with improved access.
- Banbury, Bicester and Kidlington have been re-shaped and adapted with an improved public realm and a greater mix of uses to maintain their roles as attractive, vibrant, inclusive retail, cultural and social centres for our communities and visitors.
- Heyford Park benefits from enhanced community facilities, sustainable transport links and other infrastructure investment required to support its existing and new neighbourhoods.
- Our rural communities are realising their potential by making the most of new technologies, supported by small business growth and transport services that are more responsive to their needs. New rural models of transport and service provision complement existing services for a more sustainable and well-connected (including digital) rural living. Our villages are places where communities thrive, as well as benefitting from being well connected to our towns, and major employment and service centres.
- The important role of agriculture and food production to our rural economy is recognised and enhanced through farm diversification, modernisation and the protection of productive agricultural land.
- We have delivered a positive and enduring health legacy that improves healthy life expectancy, reinforces health and social care, and builds features that prevent, reduces and delays the need for preventable clinical Intervention and social care.
Strategic Objectives
Theme One: Meeting the Challenge of Climate Change and Ensuring Sustainable Development
SO1: Promote net-zero carbon new developments, with the highest possible sustainable construction standards, nature based solutions and low embodied carbon to ensure new developments deliver the highest viable energy efficiency, including the use of decentralised energy; and support a local zero-carbon energy system that reduces Cherwell’s reliance on global fossil fuels and prioritises community energy.
SO2: Deliver developments that efficiently use local natural resources (particularly water), that minimise and are resilient to the impacts of climate change, including extreme weather events such as flooding, drought and heatwaves.
SO3: Deliver developments that make a positive contribution to Cherwell's nature recovery through protection, restoration and expansion of protected sites, habitats and species.
SO4: Improve air quality. Protect and maximise opportunities for biodiversity net gain and the enhancement of Cherwell’s natural capital assets, such as soils, watercourses, woodlands, hedges and ponds in order to capture and store carbon.
SO5: Maintain and improve the natural and built and historic environment including biodiversity, landscape, and green and blue infrastructure networks by ensuring new development achieves high-quality design standards, and conserves and enhances the natural, historic, cultural and landscape assets of Cherwell.
SO6: Prioritise active travel and increase the attraction of, and opportunities for public transport, ensuring high standards of connectivity and accessibility to services for all. Reduce dependency on the private car as a mode of travel, facilitating the creation of a net-zero-carbon transport network.
Theme Two: Maintaining and Developing a Sustainable Local Economy
SO7: Support a strong and sustainable economy within the district and Oxfordshire including the visitor economy, agriculture and food production, and ensure sufficient land is allocated to meet our identified needs.
SO8: Increase education, training and skills, and encourage investment in the local workforce; improve and enhance digital connectivity and infrastructure, to support a sustainable and resilient economy, reduce inequality and help to reduce unnecessary transport.
SO9: Strengthen the role of Cherwell’s urban centres, redevelopment and renewal where appropriate to maintain and enhance their vitality, viability, distinctiveness and safety.
SO10: Recognise the economic benefits of preserving and enhancing the character and beauty of Cherwell's built and natural heritage, and landscape, and the wider benefits from its natural capital and ecosystem services to ensure Cherwell remains attractive to business and as a place to live, work and visit for current and future communities.
Theme Three: Building Healthy and Sustainable Communities
SO11: Meet the housing needs of all sectors of Cherwell’s communities, in a way that creates sustainable, well-designed, safe, inclusive and mixed communities, promoting inter-generational connectivity and lifetime neighbourhoods.
SO12: Create sustainable, well-designed, safe, distinctive places where healthy behaviours (being active, having opportunities to access a healthy diet, and having good social connections) are the norm and which provide a sense of belonging, safety, and a sense of community.
SO13: Focus development in Cherwell’s sustainable locations, making efficient and effective use of land, conserving and enhancing the countryside, landscape, the natural environment, and the setting of its towns and villages.
SO14: Protect and enhance the historic environment, including protecting and enhancing cultural heritage assets, archaeological remains, conservation areas, registered parks and gardens, and promoting inclusive access to local assets where appropriate.
SO15: Provide sufficient accessible, well maintained good quality services, facilities and infrastructure, to meet healthcare, education, transport, open space, sport, recreation, cultural, social and other community needs.