UP TO 500 new homes look set to be built in Thornbury to help stop the town’s decline.

Planning chiefs at South Gloucestershire Council have said they want to see the new homes built by 2026 as part of the authority’s Core Strategy.

The Core Strategy is a key planning document for the district’s development for the next 16 years.

The authority said Thornbury had been experiencing problems in recent years, such as a high number of empty shops in the town centre, surplus spaces at all of the town’s primary schools and an ageing population.

Peter Jackson, director of planning, transportation and strategic environment for South Gloucestershire Council, said: "There is recognition that the town centre will struggle without additional development. It is struggling now with the recession.

"We are also ensuring that the local services, including schools, have sufficient demand to keep them viable."

Land north of Thornbury, next to the Castle School, has been identified for the new development.

Mr Jackson said there was a need for the Castle School, one of the top performing schools in the country, to be rebuilt, with a new sixth form centre included on the Park Road site.

It is being suggested that the existing sixth form site on Gloucester Road could be made into extra care living for older people.

Cllr Brian Allinson, executive member for planning, transportation and strategic environment, said: "In Thornbury, the town council and other community representatives have said that some limited development to the north of the town would help improve the vibrancy of the town centre and the viability of local services, including schools."

The Core Strategy, which will be formally launched next week, also comes out in support of proposals for a new junction on the M49 near Severn Beach.

Campaigners have long been calling for a new junction on the motorway, to stop lorries travelling through Severn Beach, Pilning and Easter Compton, to access the large distribution centres in the area.

The strategy also acknowledges the potential impact on the area of a possible 6,000 strong construction workforce, should a new nuclear power station at Oldbury be given the go-ahead. However, the document makes no provision for any additional housing that might be needed.

The Core Strategy will be launched at a special cabinet meeting on Monday, March 8. It is not expected to go out to public consultation until late May, after a General Election.