AMBITIOUS plans for a large housing and business development on green belt land opposite Canford Park Arena should be made available to the public today.

Developers Chapman Lily Planning Limited, who were set to launch a website outlining the proposals, want residents to have their say on their plans for the Poole site at Merley Road.

Called Canford Park, the planned development includes:

Around 2,500 new homes, of which 40 per cent will be affordable or aimed at first time buyers.

A new 100,000 sqm business park, which developers say could create around 2,800 jobs.

A local centre with shops, services and community projects.

A new primary school and playing fields.

An 89-hectare open space and parkland site, opening up public access to the River Stour.

Borough of Poole (BOP) recently launched a consultation on a planning blueprint, The Poole Local Plan Review, which contains more than 50 possible housing sites and will help shape development in the borough until 2033.

Brett Spiller, of Chapman Lily Planning, said: “We welcome this review which looks at potential solutions to the big challenges currently facing Poole, in particular the delivery of new housing.

“Our aim is to create an attractive environment which offers a range of housing types to meet the need of first time buyers and those moving up the property ladder into larger family homes.”

At this stage, no official planning application has been lodged with BOP regarding Canford Park, which - if given the green light further down the road - will be partly built on the former Canford Magna Golf Club, owned by Bill Riddle.

The Poole Local Plan Review forms part of the process of establishing preferred sites for future development, and Canford Park is one of the possible sites identified in the document.

Civic officials say BOP needs to build an additional 5,000 new homes by 2033, to meet the growing housing need.

While the town’s current Core Strategy already sets out the borough’s approach to ensuring 10,000 homes are built by 2026 - of the 14,200 new homes needed by 2033, just 9,200 are able to be developed on existing sites.

This leaves a shortfall of 5,000 homes.

One of the options residents are being asked to comment on, to meet future housing need in Poole, is to expand the town outwards into the surrounding countryside.

The current public consultation on the Poole Local Plan Review finishes on August 8.

Speaking at the local plan consultation launch earlier this summer, BOP planning, policy and implementation manager Nick Perrins said: “No decisions have been made on any of the sites so it is important local people have the opportunity to give us their feedback.” Further public consultation will take place on the final draft Local Plan in spring 2017, with a view to the plan being adopted in spring 2018.

Visit canfordpark.co.uk to see the Canford Park proposals.