Residents of Wall Heath and Kingswinford have spoken out against plans for more than 1,700 new homes in their area, insisting they are not NIMBYs but are opposing what they describe as greedy developers. Around 300 people gathered at Summerhill School on May 22 to voice their opposition to an outline planning application for 557 houses on land known as The Triangle. This is one of several applications that campaigners from the Wall Heath and Kingswinford Green Belt Group say could lead to over 1,700 new homes in the region.
Community Meeting Highlights Concerns
The meeting was addressed by Kingswinford MP Mike Wood and Dudley Council Leader Councillor Patrick Harley, who both pledged to fight the development on agricultural land that planners are being asked to reclassify as grey belt. Wall Heath resident Richard Molland said: We do need more housing, but this development will not benefit those desperate for homes. It will be more four-bedroom houses with minimal affordable housing, and the strain on infrastructure is unsustainable. I am not a NIMBY; if this were affordable housing, I would support it, but it is not.
Infrastructure Strain Fears
Many residents are worried about the extra demand on local services. Timothy Williams, also from Wall Heath, said: If approved, this will create more bottlenecks on the roads. Kingswinford already has terrible traffic queues. School catchment areas are limited; only those living on The Triangle would be able to attend the local school. Dudley Council withdrew from the Black Country plan in 2022 after a negative response to green belt development, but residents now feel that changes to national planning laws have overridden their objections. Andrea Smith added: The people of Kingswinford and Wall Heath already spoke, with over 15,000 objections a few years ago. But new planning laws have taken control away from us.
Grey Belt Controversy
Steve Parkes, from Kingswinford, was outspoken about the grey belt concept: No one with a normal brain classifies agricultural land as development land. Grey belt is a con, a device to make it easier for developers to get permission. I am almost certain these applications will be rejected, but what happens after that worries me. If Dudley rejects The Triangle, the developer can appeal to the government, which may call it in, removing local democratic control.
