Attached herewith details so the latest iteration of this plan and how you can comment
I have briefly looked and tried to make comments but i fear with success and I have to say this document is basically a nightmare to try and get your head around
If i were true cynic I might suggest that this was being done deliberately to put people off but of course that is not me ( cough cough)
Greater Norwich Local Plan Regulation 18 Consultation 8/1/18 – 15/3/18
You are receiving this email as you have asked to be kept informed about the Greater Norwich Local Plan’s (GNLP) progress. You may be aware that public consultation on the emerging (Regulation 18) GNLP will start on 8th January, running to 15th March 2018. We are seeking your views on a Growth Options document, which sets out:
• the broad housing numbers required to 2036;
• six main distribution options; and
• a significant number of questions on various policy areas such as air quality, landscape and affordable housing
It is very important to note that this is an early consultation stage – no final decisions have been made on any policy choice. You can view the document online via www.gnlp.org.uk, and make your comments at the same time. You don’t need to answer every question – you can simply comment on whichever parts of the plan interest you.
The Site Proposals document is also published for consultation. It lists sites submitted to us for consideration for various uses through the plan, along with a settlement summary for those parishes where sites have been submitted. Again, no final decisions have been made on any site, and you can view the Site Proposals document and interactive maps online via www.gnlp.org.uk, making your comments at the same time. You can comment on whichever sites interest you. The Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment (HELAA) in the evidence base has more detail on the sites submitted for potential inclusion in the GNLP. Other evidence studies, along with the Interim Sustainability Appraisal are also available online for comment.
About 25 roadshows at various locations in Greater Norwich have been planned to take place during the consultation period. The precise venues and dates are published on www.gnlp.org.uk. Officers will be available at the roadshows to discuss policy options or sites in general terms, but it is stressed that this is an early stage consultation exercise, and no decisions will be made until later in the plan-making process. Parish councils have been invited to separate workshops.
Hard copies of the maps and all other consultation documents are available from the consultation deposit points:
• County Hall, Martineau Lane, Norwich (main reception);
• City Hall, St Peters Street, Norwich (2nd floor reception);
• Broadland District Council, Thorpe Road, Thorpe St Andrew (main reception);
• South Norfolk Council, Cygnet Court, Long Stratton (main reception).
The quickest and easiest way of responding to the consultation is online at www.gnlp.org.uk but if you can’t respond online, please contact us on 01603 306603 to get a response booklet. All responses must be received by 5pm on 15th March 2018.
WHY is the local Wymondham Roadshow organised with just ONE DAY BEFORE the consultation deadline? This does not provide residents with enough time to reply and engage in the consultation. The GNLP is hardly acting in a responsible manner, but still, I suppose after the last Local Plan and associated behaviour it is to be expected. The lack of public transport makes the Norwich Roadshows unattainable (I presume The Forum is referring to the one in Norwich?)
The recent and current South Norfolk Local Plan was a failure for this village. Examples of this locally are that Spooner Row was allocated 15 new houses (this was considered sustainable), but the current number is 60 and still growing with no extra infrastructure. In addition, the legally required road safety Policy for School Lane to have a pedestrian footpath as part of the new development cannot be delivered because the District Council were the only ones in the area who didn't know the road was too narrow (although the council was told this during the consultations). Also, the Bunwell Road site was considered unsuitable for development within the Local Plan due to landscape considerations as the site had 'very open farmland' and the 'FLOOD RISK' (it is of concern that the flood risk is still a very serious problem even though the unsuitable site is currently under development). What was the point of the Local Plan for here?
I wonder if the powers that be, still intend to turn Spooner Row into a town with either 5,000 or 10,000 new houses as part of this future local plan? I hope not as there's too much local flooding throughout the village! This would need a lot of finance and infrastructure to address.
A summary of KEY issues The number of words in the document is horrendous and in my view deliberately so, so any commentary is effectively discouraged and in any event is by necessity going to be very general . That all said , with the help of the Clerk at Wymondham what we need to look at, and concentrate is the bit at 5.69 which is the settlement summary for Spooner row where the detail, specifies areas of land identified with house numbers suggested in a significant area around the centre. A quick calculation suggests , if all granted effective permission for another 294 houses the only suggested sweeteners being a shop , near the pub and an extended rail car park.
There is stuff proposed in Suton, I believe but I have not had a chance to digest this bit yet. Sorry ( please remember I do this 'job' unpaid and in my own time )
The document goes onto say many of the sites are subject to flooding risk ( no surprises there Sherlock ) but given that one of the flood risk identified sites in station road has just been given planning permission, one is left with the distinct impression that the Planners will pass them all anyway claiming these issues can mitigated for. ( Really?) As we have seen in Bunwell road , once permission is given they walk away and leave us the residents to pick up and cope with the mess. I am advised that the current head of Planning at SNDC has now left that role and they are leaderless.
Where are all these houses going.? I will try and summarise again but for detail please look at maps.
Top common at the station road end up to the houses on the left on the same side (15 houses )
Station road opposite the school up to Top common ( already given permission) (10)
The field behind the stupidly granted permission site in School lane ( these are not included) ( 38)
The field in Station road and right back and behind the council houses to the north (88) Where the river runs through !!
The field opposite on Station road (54)
A strip behind granted PP in chapel road up to the end of the council houses but on the opposite side (15)
The piece of fallow land on the corner of Guilers lane near the pub ( 5)
The field opposite the houses in Bunwell road and behind those in queen st up to existing thatched property (61)
On the same side just beyond Top common but before Sluthole lane (8)
So where do we go from here?
The argument used constantly is that decisions yet to be made so 'calm down' , but by then has the Plan crept through? Can I suggest you write to the GNLP ( Mike Burrell) in any event and tell them about flooding, lack of infrastructure and is there any real need to destroy the village and turn it into a housing swamp. Our rep on the GNDP is Lee Hornby at South Norfolk ( also WTC). Copy in WTC and South Norfolk as well and make it very clear how you feel NOW and do not be put of by stalling and wait and see arguments. Copy in our District councillor Jack Hornby
From a previous document, issued last year from the GNDP, it declared that Spooner Row was not suitable for small or medium development due to the flood risk in the village and lack of infrastructure (this looks relatively small/medium scale). So what has happened to that recommendation? A large-scale development would require a huge amount of infrastructure expenditure. This looks to me as a way of getting large-scale development in Spooner Row bit by bit without the infrastructure provision to save developers money. The whole village will be left in a mess and at risk!
It would be impossible to engineer away the flood risk of Spooner Row unless they want to build-up low-lying land and redirect the river! It is at times like this that we need a proper Parish Council working for local people in Spooner Row and not left to just one local councillor to deal with (i.e. Julian - thank goodness we have him).
Hello all, if anyone wants to take a look at a map showing all of the sites in Spooner Row then please email me on robert@netcom.co.uk and I will send you a PDF document.
In the Site Proposals Document, Spooner Row can be found on pages 284 to 287: https://gnlp.jdi-consult.net/documents/pdfs/Greater%20Norwich%20Local%20plan%20final%20site%20pros.pdf
Developments of 5 dwellings or less are classed as small-scale and less relevant. The School Lane site should read 7 committed dwellings rather than 5 in error. It would help if the figures were correct.
Spooner Row was previously (and currently) classed as a separate 'Norwich Service Village' in the settlement hierarchy but is now included under 'Main Towns' with Wymondham. When was this changed?
The Document states Spooner Row has 0 Homes Committed from April 2017. Surely Spooner Row has already made a commitment of over 60 new homes and this should be recognised.
The Consultation Document lists several growth options, https://gnlp.jdi-consult.net/localplan/readdoc.php?docid=12&chapter=9&docelemid=d4547#d4547
I heard yesterday good news and bad news about this which does not help BUT it may do
The latest GNDP model which will replace entirely the Joint Core strategy is only looking for just over 8000 new houses for the period 2026 - 2036 for the whole of Norwich , Broadland and South Norfolk, as apparently 40,000 houses have already been given permission. The suggestion for a new town near Hethel ? will potentially take up 5000 of these allocations so just 3000 for the whole of the 3 councils, which I suppose we can run with and makes the potential for a massive number way over the current proposals unlikely and puts the brakes on stupid numbers.
A large number of the 40,000 ( this is a surprisingly high number) have yet to be built on account of developers not wanting to overstretch themselves AND of course keep prices high ( but they do not admit this)
Many more houses in Norwich is unlikely but the NDR has thrown up lots of opportunities AND district councils are very keen to give PP anywhere because they want the rate revenue in, to stay solvent. Central Govt grants going and very soon gone ! and so apparently, are less inclined to listen to local objections whether sensible or not such as flooding. Developers will then cherry pick the best sites to develop so one would like to think a housing estate with a river running through to middle is less likely to happen.
I would suggest you still object and make lots of noise about flooding and lack of infrastructure if you were going to do so and MAYBE we might end up with sensible number allowed in sensible places. It is apparent that the whole process in now very fluid and the depression from Brexit is clearly having an effect as houses do not get sold more especially when they are silly prices, as we seem to be building in the village.
I accept totally this is a very cloudy crystal ball reading of the situation but it is the best I can do ...sorry
erm.. are they going to build a new hospital or greatly extend the Norfolk & Norwich to cater for nearly half a million new houses (with several occupants per house)?
Will no doubt increase car park size and fees to get more money in, and you will have to wait longer, assuming you do not die in the meantime. That will make you feel better
I may be looking at this map wrongly but I note that the majority of the proposed sites are towards the regularly flooding parts of the village and the dry end, up by the 'travellers site' area, close to the trunk road, has no proposed developments on it.
Can someone out there explain the logic of this strange plan?
This plan is a map of the sites which have been identified by the Land owners and developers as sites they would like to see developed. It does not mean they will be but at this stage means they could be included in a plan which allows development to take place.
The Planners and South Norfolk are desperate for development to take place so they can get in the rate revenue and get what is called the New Homes initiative payment per house which to be brutal is a simple bribe to get houses built and if approved will become a very important source of funds for the Council to use at will. The fact that this encourages a blind eye to be turned to valid Planning objections and practical considerations such as flooding and lack of infrastructure , called Localism (common sense) apparently does not matter.
Where houses are proposed in low population areas they do not get objected to because numbers matter and councillors are happy to dump the problem anywhere other than on their doorstep as they lose votes by seeing to approve this. Some councillors do not think this matters and succumb to internal party pressures to go along with this thinking this will buy them favours and cement their future in their Party and their political future.
Whether these sites get accepted is for the GNDP to decide which is why it is so important they be told how you as a local resident feel about this.
Planners, as you will see if you read the reports are very good at producing massive tomes of meaningless words , so convoluted that they can mean anything to anyone so they can be twisted to suit so whoever is driving this gets what they want.
The lack of a 5 year land supply has been up to now a gift for developers to exploit , and exploit it they have. That loophole is closing rapidly but district councils finances are staring at a big pit they are driving towards so they are keen to progress anything which will help fund them for the future.
I am becoming increasingly fed up with our local councils. They have the power to implement whatever they want and don't we just know it. They don't listen to what the average local person has to say, yet accommodate local landowners whims. This village has had planning application after planning application authorised, reducing our living conditions with no infrastructure applied. We've got flood issues, poor broadband connection, poor mobile signal, problems with power and water supply, more heavy traffic using badly maintained country roads, increased dangerous road situations yet landowners alongside the council want more housing here. It is disgusting to treat people like this. The councils won't even allow us to govern ourselves with a new community/parish council to help us improve things. And to add to this, the new parish was recommended and forwarded on but a small handful of local councillors used their position of power to crush it. The local system here is stifling and depressing. As for the latest identified sites, it makes no difference if they are included or not in the GNDP, as they will get planning permission anyway, under whatever planning scheme, or lack of, the council dreams up.
It councils are looking into empty pits for funding, then perhaps they should not vote for themselves to have councillor pay increases and not spend two million pounds to extend and refurbish the sports centre which just happens to be right next to the council offices.
There is absolutely no point to local plans as everything within them can be overruled by the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) under the term of "material considerations indicate otherwise" during the planning process. Local plans are a total waste of our financial resources which should be put to a better use on frontline needs.
Dear All I have finally worked out how to comment ( you have to be registered) on the proposed development sites so if you want to, please let me know as it is a nightmare and I will school you through it.
We come under Wymondham but then are separately listed when you drill down
Town Council has set up a working group to comment upon this project and I am one of the members but we have a short window to comment although I note one of the roadshows is in Hethersett from 2 pm to 8 pm at the village Hall on the 14th Feb whereas the one for Wymondham , is , as others have pointed minutes before the closing date in mid March
If you have strong views or concerns please let me know either here or by e mail / phone and I will put your viewpoint across
I have received an email to say that the Greater Norwich Local Plan public consultation has been extended to run until Thursday 22nd March 2018.
What is put forward can potentially have a fundamental impact on Spooner Row and Suton. Please get involved with the consultation at: http://www.gnlp.org.uk/
It covers aspects such as growth areas, specific sites put forward for potential development including Spooner Row & Suton and a sustainability appraisal.
- For commenting on the Specific sites click here; https://gnlp.jdi-consult.net/localplan/readdoc.php?docid=13&chapter=5&docelemid=d4546#d4546 Scroll down to Spooner Row proposed sites. The Suton sites are at the end of the list under Wymondham.
- The Interim Sustainability Appraisal is at; https://gnlp.jdi-consult.net/localplan/readdoc.php?docid=15 Look for these:
You will need to register and log in before commenting on the website.
Having visited The Hub for the Roadshow in Wymondham yesterday, it was noticeable that Spooner Row had large swathes of 'red' patches as compared to surrounding villages, i.e. Bunwell, Carleton Rode, Ashwellthorpe, Wreningham, Morley etc. Quite an eye opener and also the swathes predicted for one of the most rural parts of Wymondham: Cavick, Dykebeck and Bradmans Lane. As Julian has said, we must respond to the GNDP consultation by the 22nd March in order to endeavour to save our green spaces.
You have until tomorrow, 5pm to comment on the new Local Plan (22 March). There are large swathes of land put forward as sites for proposed developments. These are shown as red on the map and nearly all properties in Spooner Row will be affected. Last chance to have your say. https://gnlp.jdi-consult.net/localplan/readdoc.php?docid=13&chapter=5&docelemid=d4546#d4546
I strongly object to Spooner Row called a Norwich Service Village in the local plan / gnlp. It sounds cheap and we do have a community that is more than just one that commutes to Norwich. I have lived in the village for some years and I dont remember being consulted on Spooner Row labeled with this status. When did the council decide this for us and when did they engage with residents for our input?
This whole exercise is pointless for whatever formally, approved local plan that is adopted, which includes both the current one and this one, it will be totally irrelevant as SNDC continues to fail in the delivery of its 5-year housing land supply calculations. This means that any local plan is immediately out-of date and new housing allocations are ignored resulting in a bonanza for developers. The local government's website shows how the 5-year housing land supply works - https://www.local.gov.uk/plan-making-5-year-housing-land-supply
