DECISIONS on where to build housing developments in West Berkshire are taken “behind closed doors”, according to opposition councillors.

Land chosen for new houses — sometimes hundreds of homes — is decided years in advance by West Berkshire Council, after consulting with the public.

Currently, the council is reviewing its local plan, which will decide where to build homes over the next 16 years.

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But councillor Alan Macro (Lib Dem, Theale) said this review, and specifically how sites are selected, should be more transparent and democratic.

He submitted a motion to the council in September, calling for the public to have the right to speak during meetings when development sites are chosen.

Cllr Macro said previously sites were selected by a “task group meeting in private”, and despite some oversight by councillors, it was impossible to change which sites were chosen.

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He said: “The decisions on which sites should be included in the local plan documents were therefore effectively taken behind closed doors.”

But now Bryan Lyttle, planning policy manager, has defended the current process and is advising against any changes. In a report to the full council, which will meet on January 9, he warned any changes would create “an additional cost to the council”.

As part of a public consultation in 2016, the document which allocates site for housing developments received 11,501 comments from more than 4,000 people. Mr Lyttle said: “This cannot be considered a ‘behind-closed-doors process’.

“Given the level of community involvement demonstrated in the [2016 consultation], the process is very clear, well documented, transparent and democratic, and could not be classed as being ‘behind closed doors’.” 

At the end of January, the council is due to publish a document showing what land is available and where for housing developments. This preliminary assessment will go onto inform which sites are chosen. 

This ‘housing and economic land availability assessment’ was due to be published in November 2019, but was delayed because of the general election.