Residents of Down Ampney, a village situated near RAF Fairford, have raised significant concerns regarding a proposed plan to build 1,658 new homes under the flight path of US military bombers. The development forms part of the Cotswold District Council’s draft blueprint, which plans to accommodate 18,900 new homes across ten strategic locations by 2043.
Down Ampney has been identified by district planners as a suitable site for this ‘garden village’ development over the next two decades. However, locals question the safety, health, and wellbeing implications of building so close to an active military airbase.
David Eglise, Chair of Down Ampney Parish Council, addressed the district council meeting on 3 August, emphasising the village’s proximity to RAF Fairford, an operational US airbase that hosts B1B and B52 bombers. He highlighted how current residents already experience intense noise and vibration disturbances caused by these aircraft.
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“Existing nearby residents already experience intense aircraft noise and vibration disturbances yet we are being asked to allocate this site before key points have been answered,” Eglise stated.
He referenced World Health Organisation findings linking aircraft noise to sleep disturbance and adverse health outcomes, questioning whether sufficient evidence exists to ensure future residents would enjoy a healthy living environment in this location.
Additionally, Eglise raised concerns about aviation safety, noting that government policy restricts new development near runways due to increased risk during take-off and landing phases. He queried whether the council had secured an independent risk assessment of placing thousands of new residents beneath RAF Fairford’s flight paths.
“RAF Fairford operations are significant enough to dictate changes in land design and drainage because of safeguarding requirements and bird strike risk,” he said. “If these operations are important enough to influence development design, why wouldn’t they influence whether development should happen here at all?”
Furthermore, Eglise warned that such a large development would alter the character of Down Ampney and place considerable pressure on local infrastructure including roads, schools, healthcare, and other services. He urged the council to provide evidence demonstrating that such a development constitutes sustainable growth and questioned whether an independent assessment would be conducted and published.
Adam Crawford, another parish councillor, added that RAF Fairford uniquely lacks an official military airfield noise map. This absence prevents the council from fully accounting for the airbase’s acoustic impact, especially considering the recent increase in noise from the stationing of loud US Air Force B-52H Stratofortress and supersonic B1B Lancer bombers.
Citing a recent letter from MP Roz Savidge to the Defence Secretary requesting the creation of such a noise map, Crawford asked if the council would suspend progress on the Down Ampney housing allocation until the Ministry of Defence completed, published, and assessed this crucial environmental safety data.
In response, Andrew Maxted, interim head of planning policy and infrastructure, conveyed that the council has been consulting the Ministry of Defence over aviation concerns. He said that the MOD had reviewed the draft proposals and had raised no objections to the Down Ampney site.
Maxted also explained that developments exceeding 1,500 homes are categorised as garden villages, offering the scale necessary to include amenities such as schools and local centres. He argued that a single large development like the one proposed at Down Ampney would be more sustainable than multiple smaller developments scattered across the district.