AFFORDABLE housing, traffic and parking will be the main focus of Dorchester Town Council over the next four years, the town's business community has been told.

Town clerk Adrian Stuart addressed a breakfast meeting of the county town's Chamber of Commerce at Athelhampton House this morning to set out the council's vision for Dorchester.

He explained that it was an interesting time for the authority, which was being asked to do more and more in the light of cuts to district and county council funding.

Mr Stuart said that another issues for Dorchester was the town's rapidly expanding population, which had grown by 30 per cent in the last 15 years and was expected to increase by a further 20 per cent in the next ten years.

He said that while some councils had to look at stimulating business and encouraging growth in their towns, this was not a major issue for Dorchester as the efforts of local businesses had helped ensure the economy was 'thriving and growing significantly'.

Mr Stuart said a major focus for the council was instead looking a the infrastructure to support the growing local population and business sector.

He said: "The traffic and parking in the town are a major consequence of that and if you are a young person wanting to live in the town and work in it frankly you have not got a hope.

"It's a real struggle for anybody who isn't already on the housing ladder in Dorchester to get on the housing ladder in Dorchester."

Mr Stuart added: "The big issues that we are wrestling with are how do we sort out the traffic so people can get to and around the town effectively, how can we sort out the parking and how can we get to the stage where it is possible for a young person to be able to buy a property in town and live and work there."

He said that one of the key things the town council had been able to do in terms of traffic and parking was to get the county council, which is responsible for highways, and West Dorset District Council, which manages the town's off-street car parks, in a room together and talking about the two issues.

Mr Stuart said other areas the town council was looking at included encouraging more apprenticeships for young people and he said he was keen to work with local businesses to build on a scheme that had already seen six apprentice opportunities created.

When the session was opened to questions Mr Stuart was asked about the latest on the Dorchester Transport and Environment Plan (DTEP).

He said the scheme, which was being put forward by the county council to address traffic issues in the town, had largely stalled but some elements such as junction improvements and changes to traffic lights were moving forward.