More than 3,000 homes in pipeline for Shrewsbury

Proposed developments include urban extensions to the south and west of the town.

The Shrewsbury south sustainable urban extension will see 900 homes created on land off Oteley Road, while the western extension will see about 750 homes built off Welshpool Road in Bicton Heath along with a multi-million pound link road and 12 hectares of land set aside for employment.

In total 3,640 homes will be needed in the county town, according to the revised Site Allocations and Managment of Development (SAMDev) plan.

Government inspector Claire Sherratt has published her proposed modifications to the county-wide document, which lays out Shropshire Council's plans to build 27,500 homes by 2016.

Among the most controversial schemes is for 117 houses off Whittington Road, in the shadow of Oswestry's historic hill fort. Protesters had called for the development to be taken out of the housing blueprint saying that it would ruin the environment of the iron age hill fort that towers above the north of the town.

A nationwide petition gained 8,000 names but failed to convince the inspector the land should remain as fields. Instead she said: "The development should demonstrate appropriate regard to the significance and setting of Old Oswestry Hill Fort." The hill fort scheme will have to be drawn up to include a full archaeological assessment, ensuring long distance views to and from the hill fort are conserved.

But protesters say their feelings and the views of archaeological experts have been ignored.

The inspector has also given the go-ahead for a major urban extension to the south of Oswestry which, when added to the smaller housing sites around the town, designated in the SAMdev document will see more than 1,417 homes built in the town as well as zones for employment and recreation.

Inspector Sherratt has outlined her proposed modifications to the countywide document in a 91-page document, which will now be subject to six weeks' public consultation. It follows public hearings held at the Shirehall in November and December looking at scores of applications for land to be zoned for housing.

The inspector has suggested only minor modifications to the urban extensions planned for Shrewsbury.

Proposed changes to the countywide document following objections at the public hearings also include the removal of the villages of Tyrley and Woodseaves as a community cluster in the Market Drayton area.

The inspector also wants to see safeguards on any housing sites in the south of the county to protect the River Clun – a conservation area.