MORE than 7,000 new houses for Crewe – many in remote and rural farmland areas – have been proposed under alternative development sites for the Local Plan.

At the time of going to press, Cheshire East Council was due to initiate a four week consultation on the proposals.

There are a total of 23 sites being put forward by developers with outline suggestions of the amounts of homes they plan to build in each location.

Collectively, the sites total several hundred hectares of countryside, and a total 7,571 across the nine Crewe sites alone.

In recent weeks, shocked residents have formed numerous campaign groups as the plans emerged piecemeal during various separate consultation events organised by developers. Now CEC has published a full list of the sites across the borough.

The council stress that they have no opinion on the suitability of the proposals.

The biggest proposals for Crewe have been tabled by the Royal Duchy of Lancaster, and feature two proposals for ‘villages’ on farmland totalling more than 100 hectares.

The Duchy has also proposed a vast new employment site south of Radway Green industrial area north of the M6 junction 16.

This week, the ‘Hands off Wistaston’ campaign group formed to fight proposals for their local area.

The group expect CEC leader Michael Jones to attend the Wistaston Parish Council meeting on May 16 at 7.30pm at the Memorial Hall on Church Lane, and are inviting the community to attend.

See www.facebook.com/HandsOffWistaston for more details.

The sites affecting Crewe:

University Way in Crewe. Up to 120 houses

Junction of the A534 and Sydney Road. 140 houses

Newcastle Road, Willaston. Employment inclusing roadside service station, travel hotel and emergency services sub depot.

Wistaston Green Road, Wistaston. 240 houses

Land either side of the A500 north of Weston. 1,646 houses, known as ‘Village A’

Land either side of the A500 stretching north of Barthomley and south west of Oakhanger known as Village B – 2,604 houses.

Gorsty Hill Golf Course in Weston. More than 1,000 houses.

Poole Meadows Road, Haslington, Crewe. 120 houses

Crewe Road along A500 linking to Park Estate, Shavington. 851 houses.

Land south of Weston, Crewe. 850 houses.

Follow this hyperlink to see each outline proposal http://moderngov.cheshireeast.gov.uk/ecminutes/mgAi.aspx?ID=19776#mgDocuments