Greater Cambridge Local Plan Issues & Options 2020
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New searchLand South of Ickleton Road, Great Chesterford, CB10 1NX
4.2
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Vacant Agricultural Land
N/A
N/A
Greenfield
Redevelopment of all of the promoted site area to provide residential use. Approximately 100 new homes net.
Increased accessibility from the site to Great Chesterford rail station. Increased accessibility to attractive landscape within and around site. Opportunity to unlock greater land potential in direct vicinity of the rail station.
Approximately 100 new homes
Not specified.
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A new access can be provided directly south of Ickleton Road.
No answer given
None known.
Electricity, water and sewage disposal all currently available in proximity to the Site.
Electricity, water and sewage disposal all currently available in proximity to the Site.
The site is available immediately, is achievable and deliverable.
Very high: This is a highly desirable village location, extremely close to major transport facilities and a mainline train station which can be easily reached in minutes by cycle or on foot.
No
N/A
2024
2026 - Assumes new Plan adoption by 2033
No answer given
N/A
It is a matter of basic soundness that the new Local Plan should meet housing needs over the Plan period by providing the necessary supply of housing. In doing so, the two Councils must allocate a sufficient number and scale of sites to provide realistically deliverable developments, which can come forward as and when they are required and thereby provide a consistent supply of housing. Paragraph 59 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) sets out the objective of ‘significantly boosting the supply of homes’ and stresses the importance of providing ‘a sufficient amount and variety of land … where it is needed’. The Councils should therefore look to identify a wide range of sites across the full spectrum of development scales to ensure consistent delivery throughout the new Plan period.
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The Issues and Options document sets out that the next Local Plan period will be from 2017-2040. The currently allocated sites and planning permissions are likely to provide 36,400 new homes and a further 9,660 new homes may be built after 2040. A number of sites are already planned which will contribute to future housing need for the next Local Plan. However, the current calculations using the Standard Method indicate a minimum need for 1,800 homes per year or 40,900 for the plan period 2017-2040. In addition, economic growth has been faster than expected and is likely to continue to grow further. Over the past two decades demand for housing has been exceptionally high but housebuilding has not kept up with this demand. The Issues and Options document identifies that if full jobs growth is to be achieved then 2,900 homes a year would need to be built, equating to a requirement for 66,700 new homes during the period 2017-2040. There is therefore likely to be an additional need (beyond the local housing need derived solely from the standard method) of an additional 30,300 homes. Continued economic growth within the Greater Cambridge area is a key priority for the new Plan and the implication of this growth is the demand for more housing to meet the needs of those employed in the area. In this regard the Councils acknowledge this in the Consultation by reference to the higher requirement figures. It is clear that the need for housing and the ambition for economic growth are therefore inherently linked and in order to boost the economic output of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough over the next 25 years, additional housing at the upper end of the scale will be required.
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It is important that a wide range of housing types are provided in the new Plan which is facilitated both by additional allocations and by an appropriate policy framework in the new Local Plan. There is a general need for both market and affordable housing, but it is also important that the new Local Plan provides for other types of housing. The Consultation sets out the need for a diverse range of housing, including housing for older people. It is considered that this type of provision is key to ensuring that older people are able to downsize into appropriate accommodation in the right locations, such as in the villages, either within South Cambridgeshire or adjoining its boundaries. This would in turn release housing stock for other households in other areas. With regards to the Site at Ickleton Road, Great Chesterford, the development of the site would provide an opportunity to deliver conventional family homes and more diverse housing given the availability of nearby public transport. This could be either in combination with market and affordable housing or as an allocation in its own right.
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This questions relates very closely to the following section; determining where to build new development. In order to encourage more sustainable future modes of transport, development must be delivered in locations that provide opportunities for alternative means of travel to the private car. Development at the Site would help to facilitate a shift away from car use. The nearby station at Great Chesterford affords direct access to both London and Cambridge and is highly accessible from the site for pedestrians and cyclists. There are also regular bus services which serve the village, providing access to other nearby large towns such as Saffron Walden. The Consultation places a key emphasis on the need to meet the net zero carbon target by 2050. It is therefore most logical to direct development to locations where the need to travel by car can be reduced and where there are other sustainable travel options. The Site clearly benefits from a wide range of public transport opportunities, as well as being accessible by foot and cycle from the proposed residential areas to existing facilities within the Great Chesterford. Importantly, the development of the Site opens up the prospect of the enablement of further sustainable development in the direct vicinity of Great Chesterford station, as illustrated on the Plan provided at Appendix 2. The indicated area of third party land falls within Uttlesford District and is not owned by the College. However whilst the residential allocation of the promoted Site is sustainable in its own right, it can also provide a new access from Ickleton Road to this additional sustainable site, adjacent to the station, which is currently landlocked. This presents a wider opportunity under the Duty to Cooperate (DtC) to open up a highly sustainable land parcel for additional development, within an average 150m walking distance of the station.
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The most sustainable locations for development will logically be adjacent to existing development and in particular, adjacent to Cambridge itself. This is where the majority of services and facilities are located, together with public transport opportunities, employment and housing. In order to meet the target for net zero carbon by 2050, the most realistic option is for development to be delivered in locations that offer the most sustainable transport options. Given that the Green Belt wraps around Cambridge, in order to deliver sustainable development some Green Belt release may be necessary. Furthermore, the Green Belt consumes the boundaries of many villages that surround Cambridge, which also restricts growth in these locations. Some of these settlements are sustainable for further growth in their own right, as well as by reason of their close proximity to Cambridge and can similarly help to reduce climate impacts. However, as Green Belt should only be released in exceptional circumstances, as part of this assessment it is incumbent upon the Councils to consider all other reasonable alternatives to reduce the scale of Green Belt release potentially required. This needs to include an evaluation of all sustainable growth options on land beyond the Green Belt and an assessment of any non-Green Belt opportunities which may be available via co-operation with other neighbouring Planning Authorities under the DtC. The residential development of the Site promoted by Clare College would create an immediate opportunity to develop circa 100 new market and affordable homes in a sustainable location on a non-Green Belt site. The site is available for development, is achievable and deliverable early in the plan period. However, as stated, the Site also has the gateway potential to unlock an even more significant sustainable development opportunity on other land to the south of the station which is currently landlocked. The availability of a site which is both sustainable in its own right and which opens up the prospect of a larger, highly sustainable non-Green Belt alternative is a significant consideration to be taken into account when contemplating the overall scale of Green Belt release required across the Greater Cambridgeshire area. The promoted Site at Ickleton Road fulfils this function and is commended to the Council as an opportunity site for both early development and the wider opportunity available under the DtC.
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As stated, many villages both within and adjoining the Greater Cambridge area are sustainable in their own right, with existing local services and public transport facilities. Therefore the new Local Plan should look to allocate appropriate levels of employment and housing to the edges of sustainable villages, to help reduce the scale of any further Green Belt release required. This includes the sustainable villages in adjoining districts, such Great Chesterford, where the land in question falls within South Cambridgeshire and high quality public transport options are available.
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Densification of existing urban areas, Edge of Cambridge: Outside Green Belt, Edge of Cambridge: Green Belt, Dispersal: New Settlements, Dispersal: Villages, Public Transport Corridors
The Consultation explores 6 different locations where growth could be focused. These include the following: • Densification of existing urban areas • Edge of Cambridge: outside Green Belt • Edge of Cambridge: Green Belt • Dispersal: New settlements • Dispersal: Villages • Public transport corridors Sustainable growth should be delivered in all of these locations. Many of the locations also overlap, for example, public transport corridors will also be likely on the edge of Cambridge and through villages, as well as in the Green Belt. It is however clear that there are limited opportunities for major growth on the edge of Cambridge outside the Green Belt, with the only significant site being Cambridge Airport. This is however a very strategic scale of growth and reliant on the relocation of the airport after 2030. Whilst densification of urban areas can provide for sustainable development, there will be a finite limit as to how much growth can be delivered in this way. In addition, property prices in the urban area of Cambridge do not provide for the full range of households and tenures that need to live in the area. As such it is important that development is delivered at the edge of the city, as well as within sustainable villages both within and adjoining the Greater Cambridge area, to ensure that a full variety of housing to meet local needs can be delivered.
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As stated, many villages located within and adjoining the Greater Cambridge area are sustainable in their own right, with local services and good public transport facilities. As such, several villages within the Greater Cambridge area are sustainable for the development of both jobs and homes, including the adjoining large village of Great Chesterford. Therefore the new Local Plan should look to allocate appropriate levels of future housing growth to the edges of the most sustainable villages, particularly those connected by rail, as part of an overall balanced spatial strategy. Paragraph 72 of the NPPF sets out that ‘the supply of large numbers of new homes can often be best achieved through planning for larger scale development, such as new settlements or significant extensions to existing villages and towns, provided they are well located and designed, and supported by the necessary infrastructure and facilities.’ As such there is national policy encouragement for the growth of villages. Paragraph 78 adds that ‘planning policies should identify opportunities for villages to grow and thrive, especially where this will support local services. Where there are groups of smaller settlements, development in one village may support services in a village nearby’.
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Arable
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Greenfield
A new sustainable urban extension to Fulbourn, with the capacity to accommodate around 150 new homes.
The provision of 90 Market and up to 60 Affordable new homes, new areas of public open space, local economic input and stimulation of the long term vitality and viability of Fulbourn. A community orchard and wider public links to the countryside. Please see accompanying statement.
150 Market and Affordable Dwellings at policy compliant levels of provision.
Not Specified.
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The site benefits from an extensive frontage onto Shelford Road.
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Overhead low voltage cables are situated within the site, however, can be accommodated within a proposed scheme.
The site is controlled and owned by a single landowner.
The site is in a desirable location which is in strong demand by house builders and future occupiers.
There are no matters which would prevent the site from coming forward early and delivering fully within the first five years of the new plan.
N/A
2022
2025
3
The site is very infrastructure light in relation to preparatory requirements.
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