In case you didn’t know, Up to 2,500 homes are coming to Thatcham whether we like it or not… but we still get a say in what they look like, what infrastructure comes with them, and whether the town ends up better or worse as a result.

What’s happening

The decision to build here has already been made in principle. The Local Plan, adopted in June 2025, allocates land for up to 2,500 new homes on the north east edge of Thatcham. That’s roughly a 25% increase in the town’s population. The Inspector who approved it actually increased the number from 1,500 to 2,500, against the council’s wishes.

It’s extremely unlikely to be stopped. The legal challenges are gone and the principle is settled.

What isn’t settled is what those 2,500 homes actually look like, what infrastructure comes with them, and whether Thatcham ends up a better place as a result. That’s what we can still influence. Right now, there’s a narrow window to do it.

The masterplan SPD

Before any planning application can be submitted, the council must adopt a Supplementary Planning Document (SPD), essentially a detailed rulebook for the development covering design, phasing, infrastructure, employment, green space and everything else that makes the difference between a good development and a bad one.

The SPD is being drafted now. There’s an early-stage consultation running until 14 May 2026.

This is the moment. Once the SPD is adopted, it becomes the framework that future planning applications will be judged against.

The problem with the official consultation

Go to nethatcham.co.uk and you’ll find a feedback form. It asks things like “how important is green space to you?” and invites you to rate various themes on a scale.

It does not ask about:

• Whether there are enough jobs in Thatcham to support 2,500 new commuter households
• Whether Thatcham station (55 car parking spaces, three full line closures in 2024) can handle a 25% increase in passengers
• Whether the A4, which runs through Woolhampton village alongside a canal and a railway with no room to widen, can take the traffic
• Whether the sewage works are at capacity (they are)
• Whether the GP surgeries have room (they don’t)

A consultation that doesn’t ask about these things won’t produce responses about them. The summary report that goes to councillors will reflect the questions asked, not the full picture. That’s not a coincidence.

The good news: you don’t have to use the form. Email your response directly and it goes on the official record regardless.

What you can do

You have a few options, ranging from “five minutes” to “this is my job now”. Note that the deadline is 14 May 2026.

Option 1: Send a short email (5 minutes)

Email nethatcham@devcomms.co.uk with a copy to planningpolicy@westberks.gov.uk before 14 May. You don’t need to be a planning expert. Just say who you are, that you’re a Thatcham resident, and that you want the SPD to address the issues the online form doesn’t ask about. Even a short personal email on the record is better than nothing. Just list the things you believe the developer should be legally required to deliver as part of the project.

Option 2: Use my submission as a starting point (10-20 minutes)

I’ve spent a few days reading the council’s own evidence base and put together a detailed submission covering the issues I care about. You’re very welcome to use it as-is, adapt it, or just copy-paste the bits you agree with.

If you want to personalise it quickly, try pasting it into an AI assistant (Claude or ChatGPT work well and have free options) and asking it to rewrite it in your own words, or to add your own specific concerns. You could have a personalised submission ready in ten minutes, and a hundred different versions of the same arguments landing in the council’s inbox carries a lot more weight than one.

Option 3: Write to the people who can make a difference

The consultation form goes to a developer-funded PR company. The people who actually decide what goes in the SPD are West Berkshire councillors and officers. Writing to them directly, as a constituent, is a different kind of pressure.

Here are the key contacts:

You don’t need to write an essay. A short personal email (why you care, what you want) is perfectly effective.

What my submission asks for

For those who want the detail, here’s a summary of the main points I made. None of this is radical; most of it is grounded in West Berkshire’s own commissioned research. I want to push for changes to the plan which force developers to deliver for the whole town - not just put up some houses and leave residents to deal with the mess!

On phasing and scale

The SPD should tie housing delivery to infrastructure readiness. 2,500 homes sounds like a lot because it is. The number that can actually be built within the plan period (to 2041) is closer to 1,760. The SPD should acknowledge this and not plan as if the full 2,500 will arrive by the end of the decade.

On employment

Thatcham residents already commute out in large numbers because there aren’t enough local jobs. The council’s own research shows the town’s office market is roughly one twelfth the size of Newbury’s. Adding 2,500 homes without binding employment provision just makes that worse. The SPD should require real employment space, phased alongside housing, with occupation triggers so it actually gets built.

On transport

No dwelling should be occupied until GWR and Network Rail confirm the Berks and Hants line can absorb the additional demand. GWR’s On Time rate is 61.5%. The line had three complete closures in a single quarter in 2024. Thatcham station has 55 car parking spaces. The council’s own model found that even a new 15-minute bus service would reduce car use by just 2.5%.

The A4 is the only road in and out, and it runs through Woolhampton village alongside the canal and the railway. There is literally no room to widen it. We need a new road and active travel crossing of the railway and canal to the south, secured as a planning obligation before occupation. The council already knows this: their own Statement of Common Ground with Network Rail acknowledges it.

On sewage, healthcare and schools

The Thatcham and Woolhampton sewage works were at capacity with 24-hour tankering last winter. GP surgeries are already full. Thatcham Medical Practice told the council in a formal submission that the proposed 450sqm satellite surgery won’t be financially viable. Kennet School is consulting on reducing its intake because local birth rates are falling; 2,500 new family homes will reverse that overnight. None of these should be afterthoughts.

On making it worth building

If we’re losing the countryside, we should at least get something genuinely good in return:

• A proper local centre, not three takeaways and a Co-op (we already have Bradley Moore Square for that)
• Future Homes Standard from the start (both West Berkshire Council and Thatcham Town Council have 2030 net zero commitments)
• Genuine green space (the developer says 50%; make it binding)
• No removal of ancient or veteran trees (there’s good precedent locally at Dunstan Park)
• Streets designed for people, not just cars

The deadline

14 May 2026. That’s it. After that, the next opportunity is the draft SPD consultation in summer 2026, but by then the document will be much closer to final.

If you’ve read this far, you probably care enough to do something. Please do.

Read More

The development and the SPD process

North East Thatcham masterplan consultation The official consultation website. The “Have Your Say” form is here, but you can also find maps, proposals and information about the three proposed neighbourhoods (Dunston Park, Siege Cross and Colthrop Village).

West Berkshire Council early-stage consultation page The council’s own page explaining the process, with the deadline (14 May 2026) and links to the drop-in event details.

North East Thatcham Strategic Site Allocation Policy SP14 (the adopted policy) The actual policy document from the adopted Local Plan. This is what the masterplan SPD must deliver. Worth reading to understand what has already been promised.

Inspector’s Report (William Fieldhouse, April 2025) The document that increased the allocation from 1,500 to 2,500 homes and overruled the council’s own preference. Explains why the number can’t be reduced.

What is a Supplementary Planning Document? (Designing Buildings) If you’re new to the planning system, this explains what an SPD is and how it relates to the Local Plan. Short version: it’s the rulebook the developer must follow. Getting the right things in it matters.

Who is involved

North East Thatcham Partnership The body running the masterplan process on behalf of the landowners and developers. The consultation is being carried out on its behalf by DevComms, an external PR and engagement consultancy. The Partnership is funded by the developers. Bear that in mind when you read the consultation materials.

Catesby Estates One of the main land promoters for the North East Thatcham site. They entered an agreement to promote a portion of the site in February 2022. There are multiple landowners across the full 2,500-home allocation.

DevComms The external consultancy running the public consultation on behalf of the Partnership and West Berkshire Council. They manage the nethatcham.co.uk website and the feedback form. Your email responses should go to nethatcham@devcomms.co.uk, but always copy planningpolicy@westberks.gov.uk to ensure they’re on the council’s own record.

West Berkshire Council planning policy team The council officers who will actually draft and adopt the SPD. They are separate from DevComms. Their email is planningpolicy@westberks.gov.uk. This is the address to copy on any formal submission.

Bucklebury Parish Council The parish council adjacent to the development site has been actively campaigning against the scale of the scheme since 2020 and has engaged professional planning consultants. Their detailed technical submissions are publicly available and are worth reading. bucklebury-pc.gov.uk

Thatcham Town Council A statutory consultee on the SPD. Their planning and highways committee has been making detailed representations throughout the Local Plan process. Worth contacting if you want to know what the Town Council’s formal response will cover.

The council’s own evidence

These are West Berkshire’s own commissioned reports. They are public documents, freely available, and they contain the data behind most of the arguments in my submission. If a planning officer or developer tells you your concerns are unfounded, these are the documents to point them at.

Iceni Visioning Report (February 2022) Covers Thatcham’s economic position: population growth, office market, commuting patterns.

LTP4 Evidence Base (WSP, January 2023) Transport evidence for the Local Plan: traffic flows, HGV volumes, employment density mapping.

West Berkshire Strategic Transport Model (WSP, March 2022) The traffic modelling specifically for North East Thatcham, including the finding that a 15-minute bus to the station reduces car use by 2.5%.

Rail and road

ORR GWR Key Statistics 2024/25 Official Office of Rail and Road data. On Time 61.5%, Cancellations 4.6%.

Bedwyn Trains Passenger Group Local rail user group that has documented every Berks and Hants line closure and disruption in detail. The source for the line closure data cited in my submission.

DfT West Berkshire traffic data Government road traffic count data for West Berkshire. Includes A4 flow counts.

Disclaimer: I’m just a resident who spent a few days reading public documents and got annoyed. All views are my own. I have no planning expertise and no particular standing… but I do live here, I walk that site regularly, and I’d like Thatcham to be a better place in thirty years than it is today.

If you have questions or want to share what you’ve submitted, feel free to get in touch: dan.taylor.thatcham@proton.me