Residents in a small village have voiced their discontent after the government confirmed its plans to transform the rural community into a fast-tracked “new town.” Villagers say there was a lack of proper consultation and have raised concerns about the area’s frequent flooding. The village of Tempsford, home to just 600 people and about 300 homes, is set to be radically redeveloped as part of a nationwide drive to create 12 new towns in order to ease the UK’s housing crisis.
It has just been announced that three locations: Tempsford in Bedfordshire, Crews Hill in Enfield, and Leeds South Bank will begin construction before the next general election. Under the plan, Tempsford’s population is expected to surge to 40,000, with thousands of homes built across surrounding greenfield land.
The village and fields around Tempsford have a history of flooding, particularly from the nearby River Great Ouse.
Julie Davies, a local business owner, along with her husband Chris, told the Times that they were forced to live in a mobile home in their garden for over a year after their Grade II-listed cottage was destroyed by floods.
Their home has been underwater seven times in four years, the most recent incident triggered when the nearby River Great Ouse burst its banks after heavy rain. Engineers have now declared the property beyond repair and she said that nearby roadworks have worsened the situation.
David Sutton, Tempsford Parish Council chairman, also said: “The biggest problem we’ve got at the moment is that even today, as an announcement’s being made, we’ve been given no idea whatsoever of the scale of what we’re being asked to live amongst.
“Nobody’s come to talk to us at all. Nobody’s given us any indication whether it’s the rumoured 10,000 houses from before, 20,000, 40,000 was heard a couple of years ago, and last year 125,000, so what is it?”
He said that there’s no shop, and the village is lacking some crucial infrastructure before welcoming lots of new residents.
“There’s a reason there are no other houses here at the moment, because we haven’t got anything.
“We’ve got horrific flooding problems where every single year for the last 20 years people in our village have had sewage in their front rooms at Christmas.
“We need some help before we need to be the ones helping everybody else out with somewhere to live.”
The village is not fundamentally opposed to new homes, but he said the development should be done in consultation with the local community.
The Government has said each new town will include at least 10,000 homes, with some sites expected to deliver significantly more with a minimum of 40% of the homes to be classed as affordable housing.
It added that all proposed sites will undergo environmental assessments and public consultation, with final decisions on locations and funding expected in spring 2026. It added that all proposed sites will undergo environmental assessments and public consultation, with final decisions on locations and funding expected in spring next year.