A rethink is needed on where new homes are approved across Lichfield, a councillor has said.
Cllr Miles Trent, Lib Dem representative for Chadsmead ward at Lichfield City Council, made his comments as part of a call for community groups to make sure they apply for Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding.
The money is paid by developers to support new homes built in the district.
But while he said the funding was helpful to local groups, Cllr Trent said there were bigger questions on whether it accurately compensated for the impact on communities.
“CIL funding can bring important benefits to our community. However, it should be remembered that this money comes from new housing developments in Lichfield.
“Residents are rightly concerned about the scale and extent of some of the new housing developments, and their impact on local infrastructure.
“As Liberal Democrats in Lichfield, we believe that new developments should only be approved where there are the education and NHS facilities to support the new population.
“We also believe that there should be more emphasis on affordable housing, and that existing ‘brown earth’ sites should be used for new housing wherever possible, in preference to building on greenfield sites on the outskirts of the city.”
Cllr Miles Trent, Lichfield City Council
Cllr Trent, who will stand as a candidate for Chadsmead ward in the upcoming Lichfield District Council election in May, said it was important that local community groups and charities put forward projects to make best use of the money allocated from new developments.
Previous schemes funded by the Lichfield City Council allocation have included information boards, plaques, community centre improvements and lighting schemes.
Cllr Trent said:
“I sit on the cross-party neighbourhood plan committee which allocates CIL money to deserving local projects, and some fantastic ideas have been funded so far.
“However, significant CIL funds remain available.
“The committee meets again in April, and we continue to look for ideas from local groups for deserving community projects, be they great or small. If you have any ideas, then please get in touch.”
Cllr Miles Trent, Lichfield City Council
