Stop the Hall Farm development: protect our homes, roads, and floodplains

Stop the Hall Farm development: protect our homes, roads, and floodplains

The Issue

We, the residents of Earley, Woodley, and Shinfield, are calling on Wokingham Borough Council and the Planning Inspectorate to fundamentally reconsider the proposed development of nearly 4,000 homes on the Hall Farm site.

This is land that floods. We have seen it ourselves. Approving thousands of new homes on a site that regularly floods is not bold planning — it is reckless decision-making that puts future residents and the surrounding community at serious risk.

Our roads cannot cope with the traffic that already exists. Anyone who commutes through Earley or Woodley knows this. Adding nearly 4,000 homes — potentially 8,000 or more extra vehicles — without a credible transport plan will grind our community to a standstill. Even the Planning Inspectors reviewing this scheme have raised serious, unresolved questions about local transportation.

The green spaces and countryside around Hall Farm are not empty land waiting to be used. They are part of what makes this area worth living in. Once they are gone, they are gone forever.

We understand that new homes need to be built. But the scale and location of this development is wrong. The Council must explore alternative sites, reduce the number of homes proposed, and above all, guarantee that no homes are built on land that floods.

We are asking for:

  1. An immediate independent flood risk review of the Hall Farm site before any further planning decisions are made.
  2. A credible, fully-funded transport mitigation plan produced before any approval is granted.
  3. A significant reduction in the number of homes proposed, with genuine consideration of alternative sites.
  4. Meaningful community consultation — not a box-ticking exercise — so that local residents have a genuine voice in decisions that will define our area for generations.
    The hearings are running now. Our window to be heard is open. Please sign this petition and make your voice count.

This is our community. Let's protect it.

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The Issue

We, the residents of Earley, Woodley, and Shinfield, are calling on Wokingham Borough Council and the Planning Inspectorate to fundamentally reconsider the proposed development of nearly 4,000 homes on the Hall Farm site.

This is land that floods. We have seen it ourselves. Approving thousands of new homes on a site that regularly floods is not bold planning — it is reckless decision-making that puts future residents and the surrounding community at serious risk.

Our roads cannot cope with the traffic that already exists. Anyone who commutes through Earley or Woodley knows this. Adding nearly 4,000 homes — potentially 8,000 or more extra vehicles — without a credible transport plan will grind our community to a standstill. Even the Planning Inspectors reviewing this scheme have raised serious, unresolved questions about local transportation.

The green spaces and countryside around Hall Farm are not empty land waiting to be used. They are part of what makes this area worth living in. Once they are gone, they are gone forever.

We understand that new homes need to be built. But the scale and location of this development is wrong. The Council must explore alternative sites, reduce the number of homes proposed, and above all, guarantee that no homes are built on land that floods.

We are asking for:

  1. An immediate independent flood risk review of the Hall Farm site before any further planning decisions are made.
  2. A credible, fully-funded transport mitigation plan produced before any approval is granted.
  3. A significant reduction in the number of homes proposed, with genuine consideration of alternative sites.
  4. Meaningful community consultation — not a box-ticking exercise — so that local residents have a genuine voice in decisions that will define our area for generations.
    The hearings are running now. Our window to be heard is open. Please sign this petition and make your voice count.

This is our community. Let's protect it.

The Decision Makers

The Planning Inspectorate, UK
The Planning Inspectorate, UK

Petition Updates