Shropshire’s wide open spaces are facing unprecedented pressure for development.

Let’s cut to the chase. If one of the things you love most about Shropshire is its wide open spaces, rolling fields and unspoiled countryside, it might be time to move to Manitoba.

Over coming years, the county’s beautiful landscape is going to be developed at the fastest rate in its history.

Rather than looking forward to a future where rural areas and the hinterlands of towns are safe from development, we can expect an avalanche of bricks and mortar. The results of such expansion are clear. Experts from the Shropshire branch of the Council for the Protection of Rural England say we can anticipate:

• Increased energy consumption

• Increased air pollution

• Increased water usage

• Increased refuse

• Increased traffic congestion

• Increased parking problems

• Loss of green space

• A reduction in the quality of life for the majority of the community

• A loss of character in both towns and the rural areas of the county

So why do we need more homes? It’s easy. The nation’s population is expanding quicker than ever.

In 2001, the population of Shropshire was 283,400. By 2026, it is expected to be 307,300. That 3,900 rise — an increase of 8.43 per cent — may, however, prove to be wildly optimistic. It is possible that the figure will be much higher, potentially rising between 350,000 and 375,000 by 2034.

That is only half the story. Our increasing desire to live in smaller family units, or alone, means that a disproportionately high number of new homes are required. In 2001, the number of households in Shropshire was 117,439, by 2026, it will have risen by 26,725 to 144,164.

Philip Dunne MP, whose Ludlow constituency includes Shropshire’s Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, says: “The population figures are striking. They show the impact of ten years of an open door immigration policy under this Government. We already have a shortage of affordable housing across the country, especially in rural areas like Shropshire. Population pressures will only make this worse.”

But let’s go back to the future. In 1983, mandarins from Shropshire County Council compiled a new plan. It explored the issue of new housing and made for worrying reading.

The plan explained how, since 1951, 10,000 new homes had been built and 1,000 acres of open land lost. Some of the county’s towns had grown threefold since 1900 and locals were fed up. Sound familiar?

Now, more home building is required to house the nation’s booming population. Earlier this week, the Office for National Statistics revealed that the population of the UK would increase in just 24 years by 10 million – and hit 70 million in 2029. Every year 425,000 more people will be living here, the equivalent of a city the size of Bristol. Migration will account for two thirds of the growth.

Guy Goodwin, ONS director of population statistics, says the vast bulk of the population increase will be in England. He says: “If the projection is realised, England will have the population of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland combined.”

Roger Carlyle, from CPRE Shropshire, forecast increased energy consumption, pollution, water usage and other negative effects a year ago. But little has been done since. The CPRE remains concerned that Shropshire will bear the brunt, with a higher percentage of homes and people being introduced than in urban areas. It says the number of households in the West Midlands will increase by 13.6 per cent between 2006 and 2026, but over the same period Shropshire will have a growth rate of 20.8 per cent.

Intolerable

It’s not just homes we have to worry about either. The weight of pressure on our roads, schools, social services, health service and other amenities will be intolerable. Some may collapse, or need to be redesigned, to cope.

Councillor Keith Barrow, leader of Shropshire Council, said: “However many people live in Shropshire, our aim is to provide the best possible services to them. Clearly a large increase in population would present its own challenges and opportunities for us as a council, such as how to provide enough homes for people.

“We have recently completed a major consultation around our new planning core strategy that will help shape the development of Shropshire over the next 20 years.

“Waste collection and disposal would be a big challenge if the population significantly increased, and we are committed to providing the best possible waste and recycling services to collect, dispose of and recycle the additional waste that an increased population may produce. We are determined to deliver services and manage our finances as efficiently as possible, which is essential however much Shropshire’s population may increase.”

Of course, Shropshire’s been here before. According to the census of 1821, there were 38,663 households and a population of 206,153. Rewind a little further, and there were fewer and fewer people. The population in 1700 was 101,600, in 1750 it was 130,300, in 1801 it was 172,200 and in 1811 it was 200,800.

On the national stage, Home Secretary Alan Johnson says he does “not lie awake at night” worrying about the population hitting 70 million.

But Shadow immigration minister Damian Green says: “The failure of Labour to control immigration has left us in this difficult position. A Conservative Government would introduce a limit on the numbers allowed to come here to work, as well as other measures to fight illegal immigration.”

That’s of little comfort to Shropshire, however, which is likely to bulge at the seams in coming years.

By Andy Richardson