This is a text-only version of an article first published on Tuesday, 21 May 2019. Information shown on this page may no longer be current.
THE Diocese of Oxford has joined forces with the Dioceses of London and Southwark to give a joint response on the impact of plans for a third runway at Heathrow. If the expansion goes ahead church leaders in the Burnham and Slough Deanery in Buckinghamshire are concerned about the impact on the area's infrastructure.
Planes will land there within 100m of St Thomas' Church, Colnbrook.
More planes will mean more noise and traffic pollution in Burnham and Slough.
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All three dioceses formed a working group that has submitted a draft response to the Department of Transport.
"The consultation response by London, Oxford and Southwark Dioceses has presented many major questions and challenges on moral, social and environmental aspects among others, while stopping just short of outright opposition.
However the possibility of further comment including opposition or otherwise remains.
There is to be a further consultation in due course, when Heathrow is ready to submit its planning application," says a statement on the Diocese of Southwark's website.
The Revd Rod Cosh, the Area Dean of Burnham and Slough, is on the consultation group.
He said: "The joint report from the dioceses is right to point out that, particularly with Brexit, there is not necessarily an urgent need for a third runway.
I'm not convinced they (the Government) have got the infrastructure right.
They think that the majority of people travelling to Heathrow will catch the train.
I'm afraid we are going to have real problems as far as the roads are concerned and it will put even more pressure on house building because there will be more people living and working in the area. A new mission strategy"We are going to have to formulate a mission strategy for new areas and areas where the population is changing and I think what we want to do is be ahead of the process, which is why I'm being pragmatic.
We have the time to get ready.
There is no point waiting and suddenly finding we have 20,000 new people to minister to. "The Revd Robin Grayson, the Team Rector of the Langley Marish Benefice, in the Burnham and Slough Deanery, said: "From the point of view of the community here it's not regarded as a good thing.
Everything is already bulging.
As a school governer I know about the lack of school places across Slough.
There will be many hundreds of new houses and that is a mission opportunity for us but it will be a challenge for us to take advantage of it.
We are limited in our capacity to minister to the local community who are already here and we are not the only parish to be in that situation.
We also need to think about the environmental impact in terms of noise and air pollution. "The impact on ColnbrookThe Revd Peter Wyard, the Vicar of Colnbrook and Datchet, said the third runway could see the demolition of up to a third of the housing in Colnbrook.
"No homes will be compulsory purchased or demolished in the parish of Colnbrook but the majority of home owners would be offered a compensation scheme should they wish to move, because their homes will be close to the end of the new runway. "The end of the runway will also be very close to St Thomas' Church, just the other side of the Colnbrook by pass.
Although some residents are in favour of the third runway because of the potential economic benefits, many people are against it and they are very worried by it.
What can we do as a church to support the community?"