Ministry
New Housing
Over 46,000 new houses will be built across the Diocese of Salisbury in the next ten years. This section helps those with new developments coming to their parishes engage with local planners and prepare for mission into these new communities.
Read the new Housing Mission Policy here
'Best practice guidelines are here
Salisbury Diocese: 'Planning for Growing Communities' research
In 2016 the Diocese commissioned research to pinpoint where and when new developments were planned across Wiltshire and Dorset. Download the research here to see what is coming to your area.
Alternatively you can find an interactive map of the Diocese of Salisbury here showing all new housing developments. You can zoom in or out to find out more detail. Developments are colour-coded to indicate size: red - over 2,000 houses, green - 1,000 to 2,000 houses, and blue - under 1000 houses. Pin icons have been used where more detailed information on specific developments is available. Click on the pin to see the number of houses.
To see parish, benefice, deanery or even archdeaconry boundaries, click on the 'Details' tab on the left hand menu, then on the 'Contents' tab. Scroll past the map notes to the bottom, and tick the relevant box to overlay parish, benefice or deanery boundaries.
Do bear in mind that the figures represented in this research are a snapshot of planning intention as of February 2016. The rate of actual building will be influenced by the economic climate and other local factors. If you know of more recent changes or new developments that are not shown on this map, please email us so that we can update the data.
New Housing Hub
This group gives those with new developments in their parish the opportunity to share good practice and support each other. The hub meets termly in different venues around the Diocese, with the next meeting taking place in October. Contact us for further details.
Engaging with the Planning System
It helps to engage as early as possible with planning authorities so that the local church has a voice into the shaping of new developments in your area. This page explains the relevant planning processes and signposts useful resources.
Models of Mission into New Housing Estates
Although the houses on new housing developments may look identical, the diversity of the occupants ensures that each estate needs a different approach when it comes to mission. To some extent the resources available will also determine the model used.
Grove Books has produced a very useful booklet 'Pioneer Ministry in New Housing Areas' by Alison Boulton and Penny Marsh, with excellent practical advice for those working on new housing developments. Chris Scorah, a member of the New Housing Hub pioneering on a new housing estate in Warminster has reviewed it for us:
"If you are thinking of pioneering in a new housing development but don't know where to start, this is a great introduction into this relatively new paradigm of mission. It only took an hour to read and we found it to be a great affirmation of the sense of calling we already had, with some handy ideas we hadn't yet thought of."
Main contact
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Steve Inglis 01722 411944 |
- Longhedge estate outside Salisbury, built in close proximity to the Old Sarum estate.
- New housing estates can be very isolated places to live if there are few community facilities and transport links are poor.
- Negotiate for an early 'tipping point' - the number of houses which triggers the building of community facilities - to avoid a long wait until the last house is finished before the developer builds schools, surgeries or community centres.
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