09/08/2023
Q&A Feedback from meeting with Denbury Homes
August 9, 2023
Planning Application 231600 – Layer de la Haye
Proposal: Construction of 70 dwellings including 24 affordable homes (Rural Exception Site Local Letting homes, Affordable Rent Homes and Shared Ownership Homes), garages, parking, vehicular / cycle and pedestrian accesses, public open space, landscaping, drainage and other associated works
Question and Answer Sheet
How do I comment on the Planning Application?
The planning application consultation process is open until 11th August 2023. Comments can be made via the City Council’s website. In addition, you may fill out the comment box at the end of this sheet or email comments to [email protected]
Does the site have Planning Permission already? Why is there a new Planning Application?
Yes, the site benefits from two Outline Planning Permissions granted in October 2022. These are Outline Planning Permissions Reference 211392 and 211393 which approved 15 dwellings plus 55 homes. Denbury Homes agrees with the City Council that it would be best to masterplan both sites so that they can be delivered in a comprehensive way. This is why there is a single planning application dealing with a single site in one ownership.
Who is Denbury Homes?
Denbury Homes acquired the site earlier this year. Denbury Homes is an East Anglia based company specialising in rural residential development projects. The company was set up by James Hopkins following the sale of Hopkins Homes which has a long history of successful development projects throughout Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, and Cambridgeshire. Current projects can be found on www.denburyhomes.co.uk
Is the site allocated for development in the Local Plan?
The site of the 46 homes plus 16 Affordable homes have Outline Planning Permission and are allocated for development plus a further 8 homes under Rural exception scheme.A total of 70 properties.
Is the development necessary? Are new homes still needed, given all the new development happening in the City?
Yes, these homes are necessary. The need for housing was established in 2017 which is the base date of the City Council’s Local Plan. The Rural Community Council of Essex carried out a Housing Needs Survey specifically looking at affordable housing need in Layer de la Haye in October 2020.
There remains a deep housing crisis across the UK. There is a persistent under supply of new market homes and affordable homes to meet demand. Colchester City Council is responding to this by granting planning permissions for development to deliver at least 950 homes every year to meet housing need. Most of this housing need is met in the city but a significant amount of development is also planned in Sustainable Settlements particularly on sites already earmarked for development. These places include: Abberton, Eight Ash Green, Great Horkesley, Tiptree, and Wivenhoe amongst other villages.
What about the traffic?
There was some criticism of the previous Transport Statement and Denbury Homes commissioned new Automated Traffic Counts and a new Transport Statement for 2023. The traffic impact from 70 homes has been previously agreed in the context of the two approved Outline Planning Permissions. Denbury Homes reviewed the approved plans and the previous comments in respect of the Tollgate Partnership’s planning applications. A significant number of residents had queried why Greate House Farm Road was proposed for the primary access when most peak traffic would be leaving and arriving along The Folley. The previous plans show a minimum of 25 homes accessed via the Folley and a connecting pedestrian route through the site. The new plan prioritises pedestrians and cyclists through the site. The Transport Statement confirms that the access plans will be safe and will operate well within the design capacity of the roads. The required access visibility can be achieved without the removal of trees. The proposals meet highway design standards.
Are these plans the final plans? Will there be more homes proposed on the site in future?
Denbury Homes has submitted a full detailed planning application for 70 homes. Although this is a very low-density scheme, there will be no more homes planned on this 4.9 hectare site. At the end of August, the City Council’s Planners will review the proposals and ask for any amendments to be made in the light of the public comments received. As and when the planning application is amended then the City Council will provide a further period for the public to comment on amended plans. The City Council will be reviewing its Local Plan by February 2026 at which point further housing allocations may need to be identified across the city and surrounding village locations to meet housing needs into 2033 and beyond.
Are the affordable homes reserved for local applicants or are they for anyone across the City of Colchester and beyond? Can I apply for a home?
Yes, all the affordable homes would be offered to people with a local connection to Layer de la Haye. Once the need of qualifying local applicants has been satisfied then the remaining affordable homes would be available to applicants from the Parishes of Abberton, Birch, Great Wigborough, Langenhoe, Layer Breton, Layer Marney and Peldon. Denbury Homes has confirmed that it will stick to the previous legal agreements made in this regard making sure that the homes are truly local affordable homes. The City Council requires 30% of the homes to be affordable housing but the proposal provides 34%. The affordable homes are to be delivered before 50% of the market homes are delivered. All affordable homes are designed as accessible and adaptable lifetime homes while bungalows are designed as wheelchair user accessible. The City Council will manage the housing application process once the Registered Provider of affordable homes is agreed.
What about schools, doctors, community facilities and other local services?
Residential development is hugely beneficial in the way it supports local facilities and services. The local NHS Care Board has asked Denbury Homes for funding and Essex County Council has confirmed that existing local schools all have capacity to cater for new pupils arising from the development. The current Outline Planning Permission is supported by a legal agreement providing funding for improvements to the Queen Elizabeth Village Hall and the New Cut Recreation Field. Denbury Homes will commit to pay required financial contributions early in the development so that infrastructure can be planned and delivered.
Who will look after the public open space?
The development of the site delivers significant areas of public open space and biodiversity. These will be looked after by a Management Company which is paid for by the development and the new householders. Denbury Homes commits that the development will be delivered at no cost to the public purse.
How is the site drainage planned?
The development must be delivered with surface water drainage in the form of Sustainable Urban Drainage. Here, this means that a series of swales and basins receive rainfall which filters through into the ground in a controlled way to prevent flooding either on the site or elsewhere. The capacity of the drainage scheme is designed to cope with a 1 in 100-year rainfall event plus an allowance for climate change. Anglian Water has confirmed that there is sufficient capacity for foul sewage disposal from the development.
What did the archaeology assessment works find?
Denbury Homes commissioned archaeology field works at the end of March this year. These involved a grid of 30 trial trenches to sample any archaeological deposits beneath the land. The archaeologists reported limited finds and no further assessment is required.
What about the environmental credentials of the scheme?
Denbury Homes’ developments meet strict environmental standards which seek to minimise carbon emissions and maximise energy efficiency. Each home will have an Electric Vehicle Charging Point and the development will be planned with Air Source Heat Pumps and Solar Voltaic Panels. The scheme will also allocate funding for the stewardship of Nature Conservation at Abberton Reservoir. The layout of the development will deliver a 10% Biodiversity Net Gain and increased Tree Canopy Cover while homes will be fitted with bee bricks, bat boxes and bird boxes.
Will there be restrictions on hours of work and construction activities?
Yes. There will be restricted hours of work with no work or deliveries before 8.00 am and after 6.00 pm on weekdays, before 8.00 am and 1.00 pm on Saturdays and no working on Sundays or public holidays. When planning permission is granted, Denbury Homes must comply with several conditions set out by the City Council. Before the development starts, we will prepare a Construction and Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) for agreement with the City Council.
When will the development start and how long will it take?
The development is expected to start in September 2024 with the first new homes being ready for new residents in June 2025. In the first year we expect to complete 24 market homes and 10 affordable local connection homes. Thereafter, the site will be completed with the remaining 22 market homes and 14 affordable local connection homes by early
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