Toggle menu

Responses to Chippenham One Plan consultation significantly exceeds expectation

Feedback on the recent Chippenham One Plan consultation has far exceeded expectation with 1,927 responses received during the six-week consultation period.

Published 13 June 2023

The Chippenham One Plan, produced by the Chippenham Town Centre Partnership Board, starts the process of bringing together existing plans and proposals into a new and comprehensive Town Centre Masterplan which will help boost Chippenham's economy, enhance the environment and celebrate the town's heritage.

The One Plan has purposely focused on several key projects, many of which focus on features that make Chippenham such a wonderful place to live, work and visit. These include beautiful natural settings such as the river, Chippenham's historic heritage and making more of our town centre spaces and regeneration opportunities.

The Rt Hon Michelle Donelan MP for the Chippenham Constituency, said: Thank you everyone who took part in our One Plan survey. We received over 1,900 responses over six weeks and the feedback from residents will be turned into a framework to bid in for Government funding and secure private investment into Chippenham.

I set up and Chair Chippenham Town Partnership board as I wanted to bring all the key stakeholders in the town round the table to actually commit to investing in our town and working together to make it happen.

We will now go through all the responses and produce a report later in the summer.

Ron Curtis of the Environment Agency said: We are very pleased with the level of public engagement there has been to this consultation, which we will be using to determine our preferred way forward on a scheme to bring long-term benefits to Chippenham and help the town adapt to a changing climate. Working with our partners on improving the River Avon will unlock many benefits for both people and wildlife, as well as better protecting communities by reducing flood risk.

Of the 1,927 responses received 1,757 were submitted using the online consultation form, 70 representations were made by email and 13 by post and a further 87 hard copies of the consultation forms were completed and handed in to the various collection points in the town centre.

In addition, 8 public and/or stakeholder events were held during the consultation period. It is estimated that at around 323 direct interactions took place with members of the public and stakeholders.

Cllr Pete Cousins, Leader of Chippenham Town Council commented: "I would like to thank everyone who took the time to either promote the consultation or to give their views on the proposals. The response to the consultation endorses how much local people care about the future of their town centre."

Sandie Webb, chair of Chippenham Town Team added: "The tremendous response received to the consultation demonstrates the level of involvement there is towards the regeneration and future of our town centre by the community of Chippenham.

"The Town Team are keen to ensure that this involvement continues to be represented through the work of the Artisan, Learning & Leisure, Heritage, and High Street/River Quarters.

"This consultation was a beginning, not an end."

Sue Rios, of Evolve Estates, which owns and manages Borough Parade in Chippenham, said: "This is a fabulous response, which reflects the desire of the Chippenham community to not only engage with the planning process but also to develop the right solutions for positive growth of the town.

"As a proactive centre owner, we are keen to support with community engagement initiatives and understand how important it is to build strong relationships locally and work together for the benefit of Chippenham's thriving community."

Cllr Richard Clewer, Vice Chair of the Chippenham Town Centre Partnership Board and the Leader of Wiltshire Council, commented: We would like to thank everyone who participated in this consultation and provided such valuable feedback. We must listen to this feedback and ensure the schemes coming forward in the future will ensure a vibrant and sustainable town centre and also benefit Chippenham as a whole.

We will now spend some time analysing the responses and will produce a consultation feedback report in the summer. This will show how this feedback has helped to further refine and develop the Chippenham One Plan.

Explore the topic
Topics:

Share this page

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share by email