I am writing to express my concerns regarding the proposed plans within the Spatial Options Consultation 2021. The plans for additional housing developments will further reduce the green spaces locally and infringe upon greenbelt land.
A brief word about the consultation itself; while the documentation has been made available and residents have been informed, I do not believe that it is presented in a manageable or accessible format. There is a plethora of information the questionnaire is very long, and the language used is formal, wordy, and fairly technical in nature. I expect that despite many residents having concerns many will not respond as they will see it as too time-consuming and impenetrable.

An uncertain future
Given the upheaval caused by the pandemic this is probably not the time to make firm plans for the next 20 years. We have been going through a period of huge change. The way we work and live are likely to be affected for some time to come, some changes will be permanent with more people working from home some or all the time. In turn this means that the use of office and retail space will change significantly. More people are moving towards online shopping and gradually retailers are improving the online shop experience. These changes are likely to free up space for redevelopment of existing office and retail space into residential use. I believe that rather than building on green field sites we should consider a more conservative approach to wait to see whether the effects of the pandemic mean that existing sites can be redeveloped. Once the green field sites have been used, they are gone. Furthermore, the pandemic has highlighted the need for areas of nature for recreation and health. It can surely not be wise to shrink these areas while adding to the population? This cannot have a positive effect on the health and wellbeing of the local population.

Local character, Historic Towns
The character of the local area is being gradually eroded with the green spaces between towns such as Rochford, Hockley, and Rayleigh dwindling. If the proposed blue sites on the interactive map https://rochford.opus4.co.uk/ you have provided were to be used for development the area is close to becoming one large conurbation. Thus, the towns will lose their character and simply become areas within a larger whole.

Greenbelt
There are many proposed sites that appear to sit within, or directly on or adjacent to the boundaries of Metropolitan Green Belt land. These appear to include, CFS07L, CFS027, CFS053, CFS160, CFS134, CFS002, CFS045, CFS251, CFS074, CFS082, CFS078, CFS080, CFS081, CFS135, CFS064, CFS264, CFS040, CFS160, CFS105, CFS024. Moreover, some of these sites would appear to involve building within Marylands Nature reserve in Hockley (CFS024) or within Hockley Woods (CFS160) or next to the boundary of Betts Farm ancient woodland and Folly Wood (CFS064). This would obviously cause immense damage to the natural environment, loss of ancient woodland and potential loss to rare species. Even if the woodland itself is not built upon the disruption to the site while building work is taking place and the loss of linking areas of open land will have a detrimental effect on the woodland environment, causing fragmentation. Studies done by charities such as The Woodland Trust state that inappropriate development of land adjacent to woodland can cause chemical pollution, disturbance to wildlife, fragmentation, introduction of non-native plants and other negative cumulative effects. Please see: Threats to woods and trees - Woodland Trust
I would draw your attention to the following paragraph within The National Planning Policy Framework revised 20th July 2021.
“13. Protecting Green Belt land 137. The Government attaches great importance to Green Belts. The fundamental aim of Green Belt policy is to prevent urban sprawl by keeping land permanently open; the essential characteristics of Green Belts are their openness and their permanence. 138. Green Belt serves five purposes: a) to check the unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas; b) to prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another; c) to assist in safeguarding the countryside from encroachment; d) to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns; and e) to assist in urban regeneration, by encouraging the recycling of derelict and other urban land”
And
“Proposals affecting the Green Belt 147. Inappropriate development is, by definition, harmful to the Green Belt and should not be approved except in very special circumstances”
Within The draft vision for Rochford in 2050 Strategic Priority 5 is “Making suitable and sufficient provision for climate change mitigation and adaptation, conservation and enhancement of the natural and historic environment, including landscape”. I believe the plans for housing developments within the green belt will directly obstruct this priority.


Congestion, Pollution, Gridlock
An area of huge concern amongst residents is the effect of all the additional traffic created both during the building of new developments and once built from the increased traffic caused by increased population. Infrastructure in the local area is woefully insufficient already. The B1013 links Rochford, Hawkwell, Hockley and Rayleigh. Greensward Lane and Ashingdon Road link to this road. Should further housing be added to the area the pressure on these roads will be immense. There will be further delays, additional pollution, and road traffic accidents. There is already severe traffic especially at peak times along these roads. One small accident can cause gridlock. Rochford District Council is fully aware of these issues as they have been raised time and time again by residents.

In conclusion I implore you to consider carefully the impact of further residential developments on the infrastructure, character, and green field sites of our area. Examine meticulously the emerging trends due to the effects of the pandemic and our increasing dependency on information technology and take a far more conservative approach to the management of our open spaces.