Why ex-Blue Peter presenter fears chaos will continue in village used as A30-A303 rat run
How concerns from a small village become a really big story
Originally published: October 20, 2019
A former Blue Peter presenter fears that plans that could see more than 400 new homes built in a Somerset village will cause more drivers to use local roads as a rat run.
Valerie Singleton, who hosted the iconic children's show between 1962 and 1972, said proposals to build 407 homes in Templecombe by 2038 will see an unsustainable number of cars and lorries passing through the village.
Residents also fear that the lack of facilities in the village will put more pressure on its primary school and doctors' surgery and result in more people having to travel for work.
While she is not opposed to new housing, Ms Singleton says new developments should only be delivered in a sensible manner.Read the full story here.
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Stories about unwanted housing developments usually do well online if you can find a strong enough human angle - and this was one of my most successful efforts in this respect. Valerie Singleton contacted our office asking if we were interested in doing a piece about the various developments in her village, on the condition that we did not simply report on her concerns. I corresponded with both her and parish councillor David Searle to set up a date where I could come to Templecombe to meet with a large number of locals.
I visited the village and spent more than an hour discussing various aspects of the crisis with different residents, as well as being given a tour of the sites in question. While we ultimately led on Ms Singleton's comments - and she featured prominently in the photographs we used - I was careful to include as many different views as possible, breaking down the different issues with colourful opinions. I was already aware of South Somerset District Council's Local Plan review, so it took little effort to either understand the relevant papers or secure a statement.
This article performed extremely well online, being read by more than 20,000 people, and was picked up by the Daily Mail (here). It also produced a very successful follow-up on the traffic problems in the village (here). While Templecombe is not an area of core readership for Somerset Live, this story is an example of how we can both serve our local community and provide content which resonates across the county, tapping into everyday concerns and getting people interested in their local area.
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