Draft Sawston Village Design Statement SPD

The Village Design Guide provides an assessment of the character of the village, demonstrating the manner in which architectural styles have changed over time. It is clear that the 'historic' parts of the village are considered in a more favourable light than the development that followed it, particularly the post-war residential architecture, much of which is considered in the guide to be bland and formulaic. The contextual analysis draws inferences from what are considered to be the more acceptable aspects of the village's evolution and seeks to infer standards that could shape future development to make it more acceptable. There is nothing inherently wrong with this approach and it is commonly adopted in design guidance. However, what it does do, is fail to recognise that a locality will evolve over time to respond to the changing circumstances of a village and to technological advances that enable different built forms to be achieved.

The design guide considers that One of the issues with later development in the village is that it has been poorly designed, both in terms of its layout and the appearance, scale and massing of individual buildings. Well-designed contemporary development can create places that are attractive and functional, without detriment to those aspects of the existing settlement that are valued. New development needs to be considered in its own right and not just in the way that it relates to existing development with reference to its design. New development beyond the current settlement edge creates a new chapter in the history of the village, one that reflects contemporary needs and possibilities. Such development should be guided by an analysis of the design constraints and opportunities, rather than by setting arbitrary standards. For example, density should be a function of design rather than a determinant of it.

In a similar vein, paragraph 7.3 seeks to limit the size and form of new properties:

'Blocks of flats and dwellings above three storey are not characteristic of Sawston and should not form part of new village edge development.'

This approach presupposes that buildings of more than three storeys would never be acceptable as part of a new development on the basis that Sawston contains few existing buildings of three or more storeys. However, this approach contradicts the requirements of paragraphs 7.1 and 7.2, which requires that the design of new development is predicated upon a contextual analysis to determine what may, or may not, be acceptable. It could be entirely possible to create a high quality development on the edge of the village that draws upon and respects the character of the existing settlement and, in doing so, demonstrates that buildings of three or more storeys can be accommodated

The use of the phrase 'block of flats' also has pejorative overtones. It is interesting that in the Public Practice report that reviews the design guidance process, the term 'apartment buildings' is preferred.

This proscriptive limitation on building heights is arbitrary and does not reflect the form of development that could be successfully accommodated following a detailed design process.

Sawston is described as being located 'in the Area of Restraint South of Cambridge'. However, there is no such allocation in the Local Plan. The Village is designated as a Rural Centre (policy S/8), which are described as '. . .the largest, most sustainable villages of the district' (para. 2.55). As such 'there is no strategic constraint on the amount of development or redevelopment of land for housing that can come forward within the development frameworks' (para. 2.56). Far from being an area of restraint, Sawston has been allocated as a location that can accommodate growth.

Fig. 36 shows a landscape buffer between industry and housing of a minimum depth of 20m. This figure appears somewhat arbitrary and is not predicated on a detailed assessment. The need for a buffer, its design and depth is best addressed as part of the detailed design process.