UPDATE FOR HORTON AND BROADWAY RESIDENTS – BROADWAY HILL PLANNING APPLICATION25/02726/OUT

Following Somerset Council’s South Planning Committee decision to refuse the application for up to 150 homes on land off Broadway Hill, Horton, the application has now been referred to the Secretary of State.

This referral has to take place before Somerset Council can formally issue its decision.

The Secretary of State now has to decide whether to:

• allow Somerset Council to determine the application locally, in accordance with the Planning Committee’s decision; or
• “call in” the application, in which case it would be determined by the Secretary of State rather than Somerset Council.

Residents of both Horton and Broadway can make representations to the Government’s Planning Casework Unit.

Why does this matter?

Government guidance says that, when considering whether to call in a planning application, the Secretary of State is generally concerned with whether it involves planning issues of more than local importance which warrant the decision being taken by the Secretary of State rather than the local planning authority.

Residents may therefore wish to say that they do not believe this application raises issues of more than local importance requiring determination by the Secretary of State.

The issues considered by the Planning Committee — including cumulative housing development, traffic and highway safety, car dependency, walking and cycling routes and access to local facilities — are essentially local planning matters.

The Planning Committee considered the application twice. It initially deferred its decision in June to obtain further information and then reconsidered the application in July before resolving to refuse it.

Although the Committee reached a different conclusion from the planning officer’s recommendation, it gave a specific planning reason for refusal and identified the planning policies supporting that decision.

Horton and Broadway are also separate parishes and separate settlements. Although the two communities share some services and facilities, this does not mean that they should automatically be treated as one settlement when considering access to facilities, sustainable transport or the cumulative impact of development.

If you would like to make a representation

Please put it in your own words if possible. You do not need to write a long letter.

You could explain your own experience of one or two issues, such as:

• cumulative development in Horton;
• traffic or highway safety;
• whether walking and cycling routes are genuinely safe and practical;
• reliance on the private car;
• pressure on local services and infrastructure; or
• the separate identities of Horton and Broadway.

One personal paragraph based on your own experience is more useful than everybody sending exactly the same letter.

MODEL LETTER

To: PCU@communities.gov.uk

Subject:25/02726/OUT – Land off Broadway Hill, Horton

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am a resident of [Horton/Broadway] and am writing regarding the referral of planning application25/02726/OUT – Land off Broadway Hill, Horton.

I respectfully ask the Secretary of State not to call in this application and to allow Somerset Council to determine it locally following the decision of its South Planning Committee.

I do not consider that this application raises planning issues of more than local importance which would justify removing its determination from the local planning authority.

The matters at issue — including the cumulative impact of housing development, local traffic and highway safety, car dependency, walking and cycling connections and access to local facilities — are essentially local planning matters which Somerset Council’s Planning Committee has considered in detail.

[PLEASE ADD A SHORT PERSONAL PARAGRAPH HERE. For example:]

If you live in Horton:
I have seen the amount of development which Horton has already experienced and am concerned about the cumulative impact of adding another development of up to 150 homes. My concern is not opposition to housing in principle, but whether further development on this scale can be accommodated sustainably.

OR – if you live in Broadway:
As a Broadway resident, I believe it is important that Broadway and Horton are recognised as separate settlements. Although facilities are shared between the communities, the existence of a facility in one village does not necessarily mean that residents of the other can reach it safely and conveniently without using a car.

OR – walking and cycling:
From my own experience, the existence of a route on a map does not necessarily make it a safe, attractive or realistic walking or cycling alternative, particularly for children, older people and families.

OR – traffic and highways:
I am concerned about the cumulative impact of further development on local roads and highway safety. The impact of another 150 homes should be considered alongside development which has already taken place or been approved, rather than this application being considered in isolation.

The Planning Committee considered this application on two occasions and, after obtaining further information following its initial deferral, reached a reasoned planning decision to refuse it.

Although members reached a different conclusion from the planning officer’s recommendation, the Committee gave a specific planning reason for its decision and identified the planning policies upon which it relied.

I therefore believe that this is a matter which should remain with the local planning authority and respectfully ask the Secretary of State not to call in application25/02726/OUT and to allow Somerset Council to determine it locally.

Yours faithfully,

[Name]
[Horton/Broadway]

Where to send it

Email your representation to:

PCU@communities.gov.uk

Please use the subject heading:

25/02726/OUT – Land off Broadway Hill, Horton

As the referral process is already underway, anyone wishing to make a representation should do so as soon as possible.

Please see attached file re the planning meeting on the 29th July 2026 re Broadway Hill (150) houses.

Outline planning application with all matters reserved, other than access from Broadway Hill, for the construction of up to 150 residential dwellings with open space, landscaping, associated infrastructure and potential expansion of Horton Playing Field

Horton Parish Council meet on the second Thursday of every month, with the exception of August & December. Meetings are held at Broadway Methodist Church @ 6.30pm. 

Dates for 2026/7 are: 

10th September 2026

8th October 2026

12th November 2026

14th January 2027

11th February 2027

11th March 2027

8th April 2027

13th May 2027