Formal response from Canewdon Parish Council to the consultation by Rochford District Council regarding the Spatial Options document.
Canewdon Parish Council (CPC) welcomes the opportunity to comment on the document. Whilst our comments are particularly in respect of Canewdon, there is a general concern regarding any new development in the local area around Canewdon, because of the potential for unacceptable impact on the already congested roads & existing services & utilities.
There is also very great concern that Canewdon should retain its village identity & that any new residential development should be of such a size that it is proportional to the existing settlement of Canewdon. The parish is rural in character, with few facilities & very limited public transport. CPC would therefore prefer that new dwellings be provided on several, small sites throughout the District, with the amount of new development in or adjacent existing settlements proportional to the size of the existing settlements.
The sites in Canewdon that have been put forward in the Call for Sites process are all allocated for Green Belt purposes in the current Local Plan. Whilst it is accepted that some Green Belt land may need to be released to allow new residential development, it is CPC’s view that those set outside the village envelope, i.e those on Lark Hill Road (CFS043), Pudsey Hall Lane (CFS032), Scaldhurst Lane (CFS052), Gardiners Lane (CFS012) & Creeksea Ferry Road (CFS173) are entirely inappropriate because of their remoteness from the village & lack of facilities, particularly mains drainage.
At the previous inquiry for the allocation of sites, the Inspector took the view that the crossroads formed by the junction of Lark Hill Road/Anchor Lane & Scotts Hall Road/Church Hill formed a very strong, defensible Green Belt boundary & that development to the south & west of the junction was not appropriate. It is CPC’s view that this argument is still very strong today & that there have been no material changes that would contradict such an argument. CPC therefore also considers the proposed site south of Anchor Lane (CFS058) to be inappropriate & unacceptable.
Similarly, when the sites of Three Acres & Birch Lodge on Anchor Lane were considered for development, there was considerable concern regarding the potential for impact on the appearance of the church, particularly when approaching from the west & south. The subsequent development of these sites has certainly had some such impact & it is considered that any development to the north, on the proposed site west of Ash Green (CFS094), would have a very significant impact on the views of the church, particularly given the ground level of the site. CPC therefore considers such site to be inappropriate & unacceptable.
Of the remaining 3 sites; land at Canewdon Hall Farm (CFS075), between Lambourne Hall Road & Gardiners Lane (CFS061) & land north of Lambourne Hall Road (CFS062), it is considered that these would all have potential for much greater numbers of dwellings than would be appropriate or acceptable for Canewdon for the Local Plan period until 2040. There is also concern that CFS075 & CFS062 would encroach unacceptably into the Coastal Protection Belt SLA.
CPC therefore considers that, of the proposed sites, CFS062 would be preferred, but the site should be reduced in size so as not to extend northwards any further than the adjacent development in Althorne Way. It should also be subject to a phased development, with only a small number of new dwellings coming forward in the Local Plan period to 2040, with the remainder of the reduced site being identified for possible future development, in appropriate stages, during future Local Plan reviews.