DEMANDS for an extra 1,000 homes in Pendle, including possible sites in West Craven, could be relaxed following a crisis meeting.

Pendle Council leader Coun Alan Davies has welcomed a possible U-turn on the figures by county council members and officers who responded to his call for a meeting in Nelson.

The crisis meeting was called after Lancashire County Council voted to serve a notice on Pendle Council requiring it to find and allocate new housing land. Eight possible sites were identified in West Craven - half in Barnoldswick and half in Earby - but there was strong and growing local opposition to nearly all of them.

The meeting in Nelson was also attended by representatives of several campaign groups which sprang up in opposition to possible housing sites around Pendle.

One of the county representatives was Coun George Slynn, chairman of the county's planning committee.

"Coun Slynn has agreed to review the Pendle housing land requirements at the next county planning meeting on June 9," said Coun Davies.

"He has challenged us to come up with fresh evidence to support our view that so many new houses are not needed in Pendle. We are setting about the task of putting that information together. I hope that they will agree to scrap the unreasonably high figures that they are imposing.

"The county has not agreed to withdraw the notice in the meantime, which is a worry, but there is a glint of light on this issue. Residents and Pendle councillors put forward evidence to show that the figures dictated by county were completely at odds with reality on the ground in Pendle."

Coun Davies added: "They have agreed to look at aggregating small brownfield sites to meet the requirements and allowing for our very high rate of vacant houses. Council officials and the campaign groups will be working to put our case together."

An umbrella group covering all the organisations and residents opposing the housing plans has also been set up.

Coun Slynn commented: "The county council has no desire to be inflexible or unsympathetic to local concerns and, so long as the borough council can show it has a five year supply of housing land, there will be no question of the county council insisting that the whole of the dwelling need must be identified immediately.

"That gives the county council time to look at the new Government guidance on housing and also gives the borough council the opportunity to examine brownfield and vacant building options."

John Edwards, one of the campaigners against unnecessary development in West Craven, has welcomed the promise to look at brownfield sites, but claims Pendle Council is hindering the campaigners.

He told the Herald that campaigners had been asked to identify possible brownfield sites in their area which could help meet the requirement for new housing land. But Pendle Council officers were refusing to release the results of a survey they had already carried out into brownfield sites.

The campaigners had also asked for detailed maps of the area to help in their search for brownfield housing land, but they had not been provided.

Mr Edwards is standing as the Labour Party candidate for Barnoldswick's Coates Ward in next week's Pendle elections.

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