I am writing to express my views on the above document, and more specifically the Land Availability Assessment concerning the Great Wakering area.

I have noted that much of the farmland and fields surrounding the area are being considered for new development. While I fully appreciate the need for housing in the current crisis, I do disagree with Rochford District Council considering certain areas of land available for development. The land I am referring to is marked on your Land Availability Assessment as CFS057, CFS097, CFS034 and CFS056.

My concerns are as follows;
- Lack of existing or plans for future infrastructure proportionate to the scale of current and suggested development. Wakering Medical Centre is already not able to register all residents of the Wakering and Barling areas as patients. A lack of shops / stores means already car traffic on the roads around the village is high as most are reliant on cars to reach amenities. With further residential dwellings this will be worse.

- Destruction of wildlife areas/habitats. Much of the land being assessed, including the lakes East of Star Lane and the surrounding fields is a highly valued wildlife reserve that is regularly visited and enjoyed by the local community. It would be a great shame to destroy the habitat of wildlife residing in this area for the sake of residential dwellings but also to deprive current residents of an open space, with clean air, to enjoy the surrounding countryside.

- Minimal green belt land separating Shoeburyness and Great Wakering. Any development to the South or to the West of Southend Road, Alexandra Road, and Poynters Lane will mean Great Wakering will become near continuous with Shoeburyness. This is already the case where Star Lane and Poynters Lane meet where one side of the road is Great Wakering and the other is North Shoebury. And this also currently occurs along Wakering Road in Shoeburyness, just before it meets Poynters Lane where there are houses that have a Shoeburyness address literally next door to a house whose address is Great Wakering. Any further development between the two will take away from the identity of the village and also eliminate any visible separation of the two Council's districts.

- Financial hardship to existing residents. Many existing residents own mortgaged property whose value has been boosted by the desirable countryside, aesthetic views and rural setting. Development in certain areas to disrupt this could cause those in these areas with mortgaged property to experience financial hardship due to their property's value decreasing.

Please do not take offence at my suggestions, I am not a council planner myself and I am grateful for the work Rochford District Council do for our community. I do however feel disappointed that beautiful rural areas are being considered for development when there are so many unoccupied and even derelict commercial properties that could be repurposed as residential dwellings with minimal destruction of countryside and minimal requirements for improved infrastructure. Examples I am aware of include; the vast expanse of land on Eastern Esplanade in Southend next door to the Premier Inn Hotel, the disused car park behind the Foresters Arms just off Marine Esplanade in Southend, the land behind the BP/SPAR petrol garage at Toomey Motor Village, the disused land South of Ashingdon Youth Football ground and North of the new Airport Business Park development just off of Cherry Orchard Lane, to name a few.

I can assure you that my concerns are echoed by the vast proportion of the residents of Great Wakering and the surrounding area and I would appreciate it that our concerns are listened to and considered when planning and future development in our community.