PLANS for more than 1,000 new homes in north Witney could be under threat after a Government shake-up.

Earlier this year, developers Gleeson Strategic Land (GSL) and Taylor Wimpey proposed building 1,400 homes on land off of Hailey Road. Included in the plans were a West End link road, new schools, and flood defences. The site was earmarked for development in West Oxfordshire District Council’s draft core strategy as an alternative to developing west of Witney for longer-term housing.

However, the council is now re-visiting the plan after the new Govern-ment said it would return decision-making to local authorities. This means that the district council does not have to meet targets of building 7,300 new homes by 2026.

A total of 4,100 dwellings have already been built or are planned, and in February the district council set out where the remaining 3,200 homes could go, in a document called the core strategy preferred approach.

The fresh sites being considered for development were to the west of Witney, to the east or west of Carterton, and in Chipping Norton.

Land to the north of Witney was a possible location for a development half as big again as the town’s Madley Park estate.

Steve Bendell, spokesman for Gleeson, said: “Our plans for north Witney are not on hold, and we are continuing to actively promote the site in accordance with the council’s timetable.

“Gleeson has been working alongside West Oxfordshire District Council in promoting the land to the north of Witney through its local development framework over the past few years.

“West Oxfordshire District Council has been progressing with the production of its core strategy, however we now understand that the council is considering the new Government’s withdrawal of the regional spatial strategy and associated housing numbers.”

The council hopes to consult on its amended core strategy at the end of this year, or early next year.

Developers will then be able to appeal the decision, if it no longer includes certain areas.

Colin Dingwall, chairman of Crawley Parish Council, said that the North Witney development was the only chance to get important infrastructure in the town, such as the West End link road. He said: “Failure to secure this development will see no funding for desperately-needed infrastructure projects, leaving the areas involved suffering congestion, pollution, flooding, and the whole of Witney incapable of getting from south to north of the river for at least the next 20 years.”

However, the North Witney Action Group has been formed to fight the plans, with some concerned over flooding and worsening traffic problems.

West Oxfordshire District Council declined to comment.