Top Wighay Farm extension sparks concerns for Hucknall health services

Plans to extend the Top Wighay Farm housing development by a further 640 homes have sparked concerns over how Hucknall's health services will cope with the extra demand.

More than 800 homes have already been earmarked for the site, off the A611 Annesley Road bypass in Linby, alongside Nottinghamshire County Council's £15.7m flagship office building and a primary school.

But now new documents reveal plans to extend the housing development further north and increase the number of homes beyond 1,400.

The development, in Gedling Borough on the Hucknall-Linby border, has caused concerns about its potential impact on the Ashfield town for several years.

Conversations about the county council's new office building, which was given planning consent in July, regularly turn into debates about how the wider Top Wighay plans will affect Hucknall.

The new homes plan came as part of the draft Greater Nottingham Strategic Plan, which sets out housing development sites across Broxtowe, Gedling, Nottingham and Rushcliffe between now and 2038.

The four authorities are drawing up the plan together as a wider housing document, similar to one being created in Ashfield.

No specific details have yet been provided but documents confirm the land has been earmarked for the housing extension.

In April Vistry Partnerships was announced as the housing developer which will bring forward the project.

Now Ashfield councillors have discussed the Greater Nottingham plans during a meeting on Tuesday (November 15) and raised concerns about the impact on their district.

Councillor Keir Morrison (Lab), who represents Hucknall South, said: "Where to start [with this].

"The bottom line, specifically talking about Hucknall, is that we need more GPs across the town and we need more dentists, along with other associated infrastructure.

"This is a difficulty. Whilst we're talking about our local plan and preferred approaches, in an ideal world we'd like to see these facilities upfront before any decisions are made.

"It's pretty clear, from a Hucknall perspective, that you can build all of these houses but where are people going to go when they're sick or need a check-up?

"The system is broken and it's as simple as that."

The Greater Nottingham documents, which are at an early stage, do not outline if any extra community infrastructure would be provided through the Top Wighay extension.

They do, however, confirm 1,445 homes would be built on the land between 2024 and 2038 if the Greater Nottingham Strategic Plan is approved.

It is currently in the process of being drawn up in full by the four authorities and a 'preferred approach' consultation is expected to be completed by the end of this year.

Cllr Matt Relf (Ash Ind), who represents Sutton Junction and Harlow Wood, is Ashfield District Council's portfolio holder for economic regeneration.

He said: "Given this boundaries the existing railway line, I think it's a no-brainer to be improving the tram to come along the line and actually have decent public transport to this site.

"This will give those new houses – if they do come – an easy way of getting into Hucknall town centre and make the best use of the shops and jobs that are there."

The Greater Nottingham plan was also discussed and approved for consultation by Rushcliffe Borough Council cabinet members on November 8.