Stroud Conservative Group

10/04/2026

**Great Oldbury 635 homes application UPDATE**

'Mixed use development comprising the following individual, severable and self-contained elements: i) Up to 635 residential dwellings, ii) A primary school, Sport & recreation facilities. Associated works including: infrastructure, ancillary facilities, open space (including allotments), landscaping & access.'

This application was submitted back in July 2023 and the developer has appealed to the Planning Inspectorate to approve it rather than the Council. This is due to the length of time it's taken the Council to reach a decision (I'm investigating why...). This means that the consultation period has re-opened for a very short period of time (until 18/04/26).

There are issues with the application, but none which warrant refusal in my view. We desperately need more homes in the district and Great Oldbury is an excellent location.

To comment, search S.23/1451/OUT using Planning Online: https://publicaccess.stroud.gov.uk/online-applications/search.do?action=simple&searchType=Application

24/03/2026

Have your say!!

The government is running a public consultation on Gloucestershire’s LGR proposals.

Residents and communities in Gloucestershire have just a few days left to take part in a government consultation on how local government in the county could be organised in future.

The government is considering a once-in-a-generation shake-up to how local services are run, and this is the last chance for people to have their say before the consultation closes on Thursday 26 March.

Reorganisation will involve replacing Gloucestershire’s existing county council and six borough and district councils with one or two new councils. It will not involve reorganising town or parish councils.

Three proposals were put forward by Gloucestershire’s councils in November, and the government will decide on its preferred option this summer.

The options are:

One countywide unitary council

A single council responsible for all services across Gloucestershire.

Two unitary councils (east/west split), each responsible for all services in that area:

West: Gloucester City, Forest of Dean District, Stroud District
East: Cheltenham Borough, Tewkesbury Borough, Cotswold District
Two unitary councils (Greater Gloucester and Gloucestershire Unitary), each responsible for all services in that area:

Greater Gloucester: an area slightly expanded beyond Gloucester city
Gloucestershire Unitary: the rest of the county


What is the consultation asking?

The government is asking to what extent the proposals:

are based on sensible geographies and economic areas
will deliver the outcomes described in the proposals
are the right size to be efficient, improve capacity, and withstand financial shocks
will deliver high quality, sustainable public services
have been informed by local views and will meet local needs
will support devolution arrangements
will enable stronger community engagement and give the opportunity for neighbourhood empowerment
What happens next?

Responses will help the government assess which option best meets its criteria.

A decision is expected in summer 2026, with elections planned for May 2027. Any new structure would be established no earlier than April 2028.

How to take part

Open for seven weeks, the consultation opened on Thursday 5 February, and will close at 11.59pm on Thursday 26 March. Take part on the government’s website: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/local-government-reorganisation-in-gloucestershire

For more information about the proposals and additional background information on local government reorganisation in Gloucestershire, please visit the Future Gloucestershire website here: https://futuregloucestershire.org.uk/?utm_medium=email&utm_name=&utm_source=govdelivery

19/02/2026

📍 Yesterday at Gloucestershire County Council, your Conservative councillors stood up for local people and common-sense priorities. Here’s what we fought for 👇

🚧 Protecting Highways Local budgets so communities keep a real say over local roads and transport priorities

🚶 More investment in pavements for safer streets for everyone

🧑‍🚒 Stopping cuts to Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service because public safety comes first

💧 Boosting flood prevention & drainage funding to protect homes and businesses

🅿️ Scrapping the 26% parking permit hike and fairer costs for residents

🤲 Opposing charges for carers to park to support those who care for others

🧑‍🌾 Backing Made in Gloucestershire and championing our farmers and local produce

💰 Rejecting the maximum council tax rise to ease pressure on household budgets

❗ Sadly, none of these proposals were supported by the Liberal Democrats or the Green Party. Instead, they backed a budget that:

❌ Raises taxes on hardworking residents

❌ Takes power away from local communities

❌ Risks services people rely on across Gloucestershire

❌ Pushes debt onto future generations

❌ Treats vulnerable residents as a revenue source

We will always stand up for Gloucestershire’s communities, services, and taxpayers.

💬 Tell us your priorities for our county below.

14/02/2026

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
I’d send you chocolates
But they’ve fallen in a pothole on the A417 in Gloucestershire.

Oh valiant craters of county renown,
Scattered like confetti from Cheltenham down,
From Stroud’s slopes to Tewkesbury’s plain,
Each axle you rattle is love’s sweet refrain.

My heart skips a beat (and so does my wheel),
Each time I discover a dip I can feel.
A moon-surface tribute on every commute,
Suspension components filing dispute.

O Valentines fair, forget candlelight dinners,
In Gloucester we measure romance by tyre-track winners.
Nothing says passion, nothing says “care,”
Like traffic cones blossoming here, there, and everywhere.

Dear Gloucestershire County Council, clad in yellow and blue,
With Liberal Democrat zeal and a budget askew,
You promised smooth journeys, progressive and bright
Instead we get rallycross every night.

Perhaps it’s avant-garde, bold civic art
A participative sculpture that jolts the heart.
“Interactive infrastructure,” daring and new
You drive through the funding gap, it drives through you.

Our council so nimble, so fleet in debate,
Can schedule a meeting to evaluate
The subcommittee tasked to review
The pothole strategy (phase one of two).

Meanwhile the roads play geological games,
Expanding like spreadsheets with unapproved claims.
Each crater a symbol, each fissure a sign,
Of “We’ve logged your complaint. Please hold the line.”

So here’s to the potholes, steadfast and deep,
That guard every roundabout, bend and steep.
This Valentine’s Day I’ll raise a toast,
To shock absorbers working the hardest, almost.

For love may be blind, but drivers can see
The blooming asphalt topography.
Until action arrives (we won’t hold our breath),
We’ll court roadside assistance, and flirt with tyre death.

Roses are red,
Council tax grows,
We’d settle for flowers 🌷
But we’re getting more holes. 🕳️

Happy Valentine’s Day 💙🩷

13/02/2026

❗️Local Government Reorganisation❗️

The government has opened its consultation on proposals for LGR in Gloucestershire. This will be open for seven weeks.
As you know, it follows the submission of three proposals to the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government last November.

What will the consultation cover?

The consultation will ask for views on all three proposals submitted:
▪️One single county-wide unitary council
▪️Two unitary councils (east/west split)
▪️Two unitary councils (Greater Gloucester and Gloucestershire Unitary)

Respondents will be asked to what extent the proposals:
▪️Are based on sensible geographies and economic areas
▪️Will deliver the outcomes described in the proposals
▪️Are the right size to be efficient, improve capacity, and withstand financial shocks
▪️Will deliver high quality, sustainable public services
▪️Have been informed by local views and will meet local needs
▪️Will support devolution arrangements
▪️Will enable stronger community engagement and give the opportunity for neighbourhood empowerment

Additionally, there will be a question in relation to the Greater Gloucester and Gloucestershire unitaries proposal, asking to what extent consultees agree or disagree that it sets out a strong public services and financial sustainability justification for boundary change.
Consultees will also be able to leave free text to explain or expand on the answers they provide or leave general comments.

How will people be able to take part and get more information?
⚫️ The consultation will be via an online survey. Additionally, we are arranging for hard copies to be made available in all council-owned user centres (i.e libraries, area centres, offices etc).
⚫️ MHCLG has made provision for consultation responses to be made by post and email. Details are on the consultation page, linked below.
A link to the consultation is here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/local-government-reorganisation-in-gloucestershire

Details on all three proposals are available at: https://futuregloucestershire.org.uk/

You are encouraged to share the information and links with your own networks and contacts.

Although this is a government consultation, Stroud District Council are activating a thorough communications and engagement plan to ensure they reach as many stakeholders and residents as possible, and encourage them to share their views. To achieve this, SDC will be engaging town and parish councils, community organisations and partners across the county, sharing materials that they can use to promote the consultation, while leveraging their own online and offline channels.

What happens after the consultation closes?
As a recap, feedback from the consultation will help the government assess which option best meets its criteria for effective local government.
A decision is expected in summer 2026, with elections for the new unitary authority or authorities planned for May 2027. Any new structure will come into effect no earlier than April 2028.

Your councils are changing. The government wants to give more power to local areas and simplify how local government works. These changes are explained in a plan called the English Devolution White Paper. The current system of local government is complicated with different types of councils responsi...

10/02/2026

Keir Starmer HAS to go, YES or NO?

Comment below 👇🏼

09/02/2026

If you think that Reform Uk is the answer, maybe take a look at this graphic where they campaigned on the criticism of raising council tax!

You cannot trust Reform!

Here in Stroud, the Conservative group are battling the Green-led council over increased spending and borrowing that inevitably leads to increased Council Tax.

Apparently climate change is more important than the residents of the district!

04/02/2026

Spring budget = more tax rises! 😡

This Labour Government cannot be trusted to spend YOUR taxes wisely.

This just cannot go on.

03/02/2026

Jeremy Clarkson’s right ✔️, people aren’t voting Reform for policies, because there aren’t any!

This is a protest vote powered by nostalgia, not a serious plan for the future.

Farming is being used as a prop. The reality?
• A US trade deal
• Hormone-treated imports
• Ben Goldsmith appointed — a financier who wants to rewild farms and bring back wolves 🐺

That isn’t backing farmers.
That’s clearing them out.

Immigration gets waved around like a magic wand, but there’s no delivery mechanism behind it.
❌ No workforce plan.
❌ No economic strategy.
❌ No real answers on farming, energy, trade, health or education.

When politics becomes vibes instead of policy, disappointment is inevitable, and that vacuum is exactly where real extremism grows.

Big promises. No delivery. Then everyone else gets the blame when reality bites.

👇 If you disagree, explain how it actually works.

02/02/2026

31/01/2026

**The Green administration at Stroud District Council is financially irresponsible** I don't make claims like this lightly...

At Strategy and Resources Committee this week we discussed various items, including the Council's medium term financial plan which covers the next five years. That plan, coupled with other key figures, paints a deeply worrying picture. Debt is skyrocketing, debt interest is nearly doubling, annual deficits are in the millions, and the new unitary authority will inherit a broken budget from SDC. The only way the budget is balanced is by spending all of the reserves, which don't last until the end of the MTFP.

I've raised this many times now and each time my concerns are dismissed - I'm told that I don't understand the budget well enough and that services must be delivered regardless of the cost. SDC is seeing hefty central government funding cuts, but there are transitional funds to reduce the impact over the next few years, so this isn't an excuse. We should have a budget surplus without drawing on reserves so that we can responsibly support the new unitary authority (or indeed be financially stable should local government reorganisation not occur).

Sustainability needs to extend to the financial realm and not just be limited to the environmental.

See my comments live here: https://www.youtube.com/live/mITJU9VxKSA?si=M-zwrvgw-37TkYyp&t=7211