A VISIONARY plan could change the face of Chippenham if it receives the backing of local people. Town and district councillor Ross Henning hopes to spark talks about the long-term future of the town to boost its viability.

He is calling for the town, district and county council to come together to identify current and future sites of development.

Cllr Henning is particularly worried about the lack of car parking, and fears the situation could get worse when New Road car park is bulldozed and re-developed.

Proposals to build housing on brownfield sites such as the former Flowers scrap yard has angered some civic leaders who feel the growing number of new homes is suffocating the town, demanding more shops instead.

Cllr Henning, North Wiltshire District Council's portfolio holder for environment, transport and the built environment, said: "I acknowledge there is a need for more parking, but one problem is where to put it.

"I had an idea for the former Flowers site which included an underground car park but nobody wanted to take it on.

"The district council owns Bath Road which could be seen as a place to put a two to three storey car park.

"There has been talk of it before but it was not seen as a viable proposition because of the cost.

"What I want to do is form a visionary group for Chippenham to look at all sites currently being developed and all potential development sites to ensure continuity in the planning process.

"It would be good to get a few people together to have a bit of vision and push things forward.

"We need to find out what Chippenham is.

"Is it a dormitory town going to sleep?

"We need to revitalise it and drag it into the 21st century."

Town council leader Sandie Webb said she would support a visionary group to help breathe new life into Chippenham.

"At the moment it is all piecemeal with somebody selling land and then somebody else selling something and everything is going for housing," she said.

"We already know there are far too many houses.

"We need a vision to ensure the town has adequate infrastructure. We do not want to end up with a dormitory town with no substance."

Brian Poole, manager of Emery Gate shopping centre, said if a visionary group was formed, he would like traders to be involved.

"I should think a good cross section of traders would be needed," he said.