The London and Southampton Railway was first proposed in 1831 and the bill approved by Parliament in 1834 at a cost of £900,000. The section between Basingstoke and Winchester opened on 11 May 1840 – and was the final part of the London and Southampton Railway to be completed. Prior to its construction, all of the traffic between London and Southampton was carried by eight stage coaches, four wagons per week, and one barge weekly on the Basingstoke Canal!
The London and Southampton Railway was first proposed in 1831 and the bill approved by Parliament in 1834 at a cost of £900,000. The section between Basingstoke and Winchester opened on 11 May 1840 – and was the final part of the London and Southampton Railway to be completed. Prior to its construction, all of the traffic between London and Southampton was carried by eight stage coaches, four wagons per week, and one barge weekly on the Basingstoke Canal!
The London and Southampton Railway was first proposed in 1831 and the bill approved by Parliament in 1834 at a cost of £900,000. The section between Basingstoke and Winchester opened on 11 May 1840 – and was the final part of the London and Southampton Railway to be completed. Prior to its construction, all of the traffic between London and Southampton was carried by eight stage coaches, four wagons per week, and one barge weekly on the Basingstoke Canal!
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Micheldever new town not one of 12 sites recommended by New Towns Task Force
The Dever Society has welcomed the rejection of Micheldever new town as one of the 12 recommended locations for substantial new towns published today by the government’s New Towns Task Force.
Micheldever new town was submitted by its proposers for consideration by the Task Force last November, and was one of over 100 locations put forward by developers and local councils. The submissions have not been made public, but were assessed by the Task Force against a set of selection criteria. The results of these assessments have also not been published. In the past, Micheldever new town has been rejected on transport and environmental grounds.
A temporary reprieve?
While we are relieved that Micheldever is not one of the 12, this may only be a temporary reprieve, as the government’s initial response to the Task Force’s report states the following:
“We are today (28 September 2025) commencing a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to understand the environmental implications of new towns development. This will support final decisions on precisely which locations we take forward. No final decisions on locations will be made until that SEA concludes and preferred locations could change as a result of the process.” [our emphasis.]
The government plans to publish its draft proposals and final SEA for consultation early next year, and will confirm the locations it is taking forward later in the spring.
You can read the Task Force's report and the government's initial response by clicking here.
The fight goes on…
Even if Micheldever new town does not ultimately become one of the government’s new towns, its proposers, the landowner - billionaire Irish racehorse breeder John Magnier - and his developer, O’Flynn Group, have made it clear to the Dever Society that they have no intention of giving up.
We have no doubt that they will continue to promote the new town to central government, and locally through the local plan process.
With 4,250 houses on Popham Airfield now being supported by Basingstoke Council and John Magnier’s new proposal for a huge employment park on farmland he owns opposite Popham Airfield to the south of the A303, not to mention the potential impacts of Local Government Reorganisation in Hampshire, a new town at Micheldever could become part of major development in this area.
With your support the Dever Society will continue to fight these plans. Please forward this email to your contacts and ask them to show their support by joining us. They can do this via our website, thedeversociety.org
