Planning Application 261587 Erection of 9 dwellings, New Road, Aldham
The Parish Council has submitted the following representations in accordance with its' procedure on planning application requiring a response prior to next Parish Council Meeting:
"The Parish Council ask that the City Council satisfy itself that an application on this site for Permission in Principle (PiP) is eligible under the PiP Regulations 2017, as we believe it constitutes 'Habitat Development', which is excluded under Regulation 5B.
If the application is to proceed, the site is not in a location that the current Adopted Local Plan would identify as suitable for new housing development and would be contrary to policy. However, the Parish Council notes that the site forms part of a larger parcel allocated for housing development for up to 15 houses in the emerging Draft Local Plan under Policy PP45. The Council is also aware of the current difficulty in meeting the Government's Five Year Housing Land Supply and decisions taken elsewhere to address this on sites that are shown allocated in the emerging Local Plan.
If the City Council is minded to grant Permission in Principle the applicant should be made aware of the specific requirements of PP45 , affordable housing requirements on sites over 5 houses in Development Management Policy DM8, and s106 obligations for community facilities and open space and recreation. The site lies at a sensitive and prominent location at the entrance to the village, and would affect the setting of the Listed Church of St Margaret's. Any access onto New Road and provision of sight splays will involve the removal of established hedging which is part of the rural character of the village, introducing a hard urban edge which will require extensive new landscaping and screening. Although within the existing 30mph limit, the access will need to address the speed of traffic entering the village from the north along the straight section of New Road that is currently subject only to the National Speed Limit. A high standard of design and materials will be needed to ensure the development fits in and any layout should demonstrate how the site will provide access to, and relate to, any further development that may be permitted on the site under Policy PP45."