Clutton housing proposals could add around 330 homes to the village south of Bath under Bath and North East Somerset Council’s draft Local Plan. The proposals comprise about 300 homes on farmland west of the A37 and approximately 30 near Maypole Close. Both are named in the council’s published draft policies.
This is a consultation on proposed site allocations, not planning permission and not an adopted Local Plan. The main Regulation 19 consultation closes on Friday 30th October 2026, with a separate opportunity until 20th November to comment on a recently published site assessment spreadsheet. Those two deadlines serve different purposes.
Residents, local businesses and landowners have good reason to pay attention. The proposals could bring new school facilities, affordable housing and changes to journeys on the A37, but they also raise questions about countryside, transport capacity and the Green Belt. Clutton Parish Council plans to agree its response on Monday 19th October. I would read the two consultation deadlines separately: the October deadline concerns the draft plan, while the later date concerns the newly published site assessment material.
Where the Clutton housing sites would go
The larger site, identified as Policy 5.9, comprises agricultural land on the western side of Clutton immediately west of the A37. The council describes a planned extension beside existing development on the northern edge of the village, rather than permission for individual plots. Its draft figure is around 300 homes, supported by a comprehensive masterplan.
Policy 5.10 covers Maypole Close on the northern side of the village. The land lies west of Lower Bristol Road and east of Broomhill Lane, with a narrow connecting corridor north of Maypole Close. About 30 homes are proposed there, alongside recreation facilities for Clutton Primary School.
The Clutton housing figures are indicative capacities rather than fixed limits. The council says in its rural-area chapter that the final number on any allocated site would be decided through subsequent planning applications and relevant policy requirements. Neither allocation has already produced an approval to build 330 homes.
The relevant primary source is Chapter 5 of the published draft Local Plan, particularly policies 5.9 and 5.10 and their illustrative concept plans. Anyone close to either site should read the actual boundaries rather than relying on a general description of the village.
The western site includes a proposed new primary school
For the 300-home site, the draft seeks land and infrastructure for a new primary school, facilities for younger children, contributions towards secondary and specialist education where needed, and community facilities. It also proposes public open space, food-growing space, recreation and landscaping. These are draft planning requirements, not an already-funded building programme.
Road access would be from the A37. The draft expects safer crossings of that road, walking and cycling links towards the village centre and Temple Cloud, better public transport and a travel hub within the wider development. The hub’s detailed specification is not settled, although the policy anticipates no more than 100 parking spaces.
A central question for the Clutton housing debate is whether these facilities could arrive at the right time if development were eventually approved. The council proposes coordinated phasing, along with measures addressing healthcare, utilities, drainage and water quality in Cam Brook. Evidence of deliverability matters at plan examination, while detailed designs would come later.
Maypole Close carries a Green Belt release proposal
The smaller site raises a separate policy issue. The council says Maypole Close is currently in the Green Belt and argues that exceptional circumstances justify removing it. That is a proposed alteration in an emerging plan, not a boundary change that has already taken legal effect.
The Maypole Close Clutton housing allocation would need recreation land for the primary school, public open space and a safe access from Lower Bristol Road. Part of the land is already safeguarded for education purposes in the adopted plan. The draft links the proposed housing with school facilities, rather than treating them as unrelated schemes.
Its conditions are unusually detailed for a small allocation. The council identifies potential land stability and contamination concerns arising from past uses, including historic coal mining, together with drainage and flood issues. It also calls for a proposed minimum 20% biodiversity net gain and safeguards for relevant bat habitats. None of those questions has been resolved by granting permission.
Affordable homes and countryside protections
Both draft policies call for 40% affordable housing on site, subject to the proposed policy framework. Applying that percentage to the indicative 330 homes gives a theoretical 132 affordable homes, but not a guaranteed delivery figure. The number, tenure and feasibility would depend on the plan as adopted and any future applications.
The western site is expected to retain and enhance hedgerows, trees and wildlife connections, with an appropriate edge to surrounding countryside and the adjacent Green Belt. The draft also seeks to preserve the separate identities of Clutton and Temple Cloud. The Maypole Close proposal has its own landscape, ecology and access tests.
For Clutton housing to be justified, the Council will need to show why these sites and the proposed safeguards represent an appropriate approach. I would focus on specific evidence about transport, school land, local infrastructure, landscape and delivery rather than assuming that a proposed allocation makes its effects acceptable.
Two deadlines, and why they are different
The official council consultation portal states that substantive Regulation 19 representations on the draft Local Plan close on 30th October. These can address whether the plan is legally compliant and sound, including its housing allocations, policies and supporting evidence.
An additional site assessment spreadsheet was released on 9th October. The council has allowed six weeks for supplementary comments on that material and any implications for soundness, until 5pm on 20th November. This later date is not a general extension of the original Regulation 19 deadline.
Anyone commenting on Clutton housing should identify Policy 5.9 or 5.10, explain the change they want and support it with evidence. A representation at this stage is about the justification and effectiveness of the plan, not the same process as commenting on the design of a later planning application. The council also explains how eligible representors can ask to participate in examination hearings.
Clutton Parish Council to discuss its response
Clutton Parish Council published a notice on 13th October drawing attention to the two proposals and held a village information meeting on Friday 16th October. That event has already passed; no outcome should be inferred from it without a recorded report.
The next scheduled local event is the parish council meeting on Monday 19th October at 7.30pm in Clutton Village Hall. Its published agenda specifically includes agreeing a response to the draft Local Plan. Members of the public may participate subject to the council’s registration arrangements.
That meeting will not decide whether the sites are allocated. The parish can make its views known, while Bath and North East Somerset Council remains responsible for the draft plan and an appointed inspector would later examine it. Residents wishing to submit their own comments should use the formal consultation route.
What happens next for the proposed allocations?
After the main consultation closes, the district council will consider the representations and decide whether to proceed towards submission for independent examination. An inspector will assess legal compliance and soundness and may require further work or changes. The adopted plan, if it reaches that stage, will then guide future development decisions.
For now, Clutton housing is a proposal affecting two sites with different circumstances, not an issued planning consent. A later development application would still need to tackle access, design, neighbour impacts, drainage, ecology and other requirements. There is no construction date or approved housing layout to report.
For the wider timetable, Planning Geek has already reported the Bath Local Plan’s separate November evidence deadline. The important immediate action is to check the council’s formal documents and submit any substantive comments by 30th October, rather than relying on the later evidence-only date.
0 Comments