A Wimborne footpath is to be diverted to avoid a clash with new homes on the Quarter Jack development.

Dorset councillors are being asked to approve a new route for Footpath 22 on the county’s definitive map to avoid some of the 174 homes being built by Barratt David Wilson Homes.

The current footpath route runs from east of Ainsley Road, south easterly towards the A31, and then parallel with the main road in an east north east direction.

The diverted route will run to where an open space and skate park are being built by the developers and then towards the A31 where it will again run parallel to the road on a slightly different route and with a compacted stone finish, further away from the main road, and on higher ground than the present path.

Councillors will be told that there were other permissive paths which were considered for the new, diverted, route, but the agreed changes were closer in alignment to the original footpath and avoids the need to remove existing kissing gates.
The new route will be 636metres long, adding around 190metres to the original route.

No objections to the proposed changes were received when the diversion was advertised in February and March 2023.

Work on houses on the site are expected to be completed in January 2027.

Dorset Council’s strategic and technical planning committee will discuss the changes at a meeting on Tuesday May 2nd.
 
Illustration – Map showing the original path, in purple, with the new route in blue. The red line marks the boundaries of the Quarter Jack Park development.