West

A sustainable urban extension

making a route for the future

SIR RICHARD SUTTON’S SETTLED Estates July 2013

Introduction The landowners were brought together to create a new community which each in isolation could not achieve, providing a new relief road connection from the south to the employment opportunities at Europarc and the A180 corridor, providing homes in an accessible location close to new employment opportunities in a way which has least impact on existing communities and enabling North East to offer great potential for promoting the economy of the area. There is an opportunity for well-designed, sustainable homes where people would like to live, convenient to all the education, recreation and shopping facilities which will provide the new residents with the ingredients ofa thriving community.

Having been invited by the Council to co-operate with each other, the landowners have put forward a draft proposal, based upon the provision of this essential infrastructure, which can be worked upon in partnership with the authority to achieve around a third of the 9,330 houses needed by 2030 in the new Local Plan. These proposals are the first step in the process to create a plan which is right for the local community and which can realistically deliver the relief road, schools and local facilities requiring a productive partnership between Council and the private sector.

The Context

The plan below demonstrates the excellent strategic location of the proposed sustainable urban extension with accessibility to employment areas and the contribution a new Western relief road could make to the main road network of the town and its surroundings.

2 The Vision Using the opportunity of the need for new homes in Grimsby to create improved linkages from existing residential areas to the Estuary Employment

Zone.

Creating a living environment which will offer a wide range of homes, in areas of distinctive character, accessible to workplaces by all modes of transport, having minimum adverse impact upon the existing environment and enhancing

community, education and recreation opportunities.

The Purpose of this Report This report is intended to introduce the initial work that has been carried out to produce draft proposals for the creation of the new communities and the relief road. It will signpost the more detailed reports that have been produced, describing initial conclusions, so serving as a starting point for refinement of the plan. The draft plan will provide the basis for interaction between facility providers and all parties with an interest in ensuring that the evolving plan respects the needs of the community and the environment.

Who We Are

M F Strawson Ltd. are a local farming family firm who have diversified into property development, carrying out both residential and commercial development in the Grimsby area. They are based at Pyewipe Farm, within the study area being considered for development.

Sir Richard Sutton’s Settled Estates farm approximately 6,300 acres in Lincolnshire and have owned land in and around for hundreds of years. The business is based at the Estate Office in Stainton le Vale.

3 The Location The area under consideration extends from the A46 at Morrisons supermarket, across the Freshney valley to Road and north to the A1136 roundabout west of Great Coates. The land studied is defined by the potential route of the western relief road, all of it being within the ownership of the Sutton Estate and the Strawsons.

The only other land interest in the area is that of the National Grid who own the electricity sub-station at Wybers Wood. The area studied also looks beyond the immediate land required in order to gain an appreciation and understanding of the context in which any potential development would be located.

The land is currently in use for arable crops in open fields, with scattered wooded areas, intersected by Aylesby Road, footpaths and bridleways.

The Character The area is characterised by open views of large fields, electricity transmission lines and the edges of the town.

In the northern part, relating to Great Coates, there are views towards the church and the conservation area. Moving southwards, the Wybers Wood housing development is prominent in the landscape. At the southern end, the area is dominated by the Acres housing development and the Morrisons supermarket on the ridge above the Freshney valley.

4 The Challenge To create a large scale development in a manner which does not have major adverse impact upon existing communities and which creates new housing areas with identity and character.

The major infrastructure commitment to construct the relief road requires a start to be made in more than one place. The key to ensuring a fusion of the overall objective of achieving a western by-pass for Grimsby with a minimum outlay of public funds is to concentrate development in this location, yet carefully plan the phasing of the infrastructure to ensure that off-site congestion is avoided. This may require additional investment in improving pinch points in the existing road system, but the eventual aim is to provide increased accessibility for many existing residents to their workplace destinations.

Visually, a cluster of communities along the new relief road will be separated by taking green corridors into the developed area to ensure that the appearance of the western edge of the town will be softened into the landscape. The individual areas of development will have a distinctive local feel to ensure that the residents have the opportunity to develop a sense of community.

An essential part of the development of these communities will be the local provision of primary education facilities, local shops and health facilities and other community needs.

The opportunity exists to develop recreational facilities in the Freshney valley, linking into the wider open space, pedestrian and cycle networks.

5 The Work to Date

Having previously carried out work on their individual sites separately, the landowners have now drawn their evidence base together and have commissioned studies of the whole area and its surroundings, to highlight the important issues and to inform the drawing up of the draft masterplan. These professional reports have been made available for all parties to work together to agree upon the impact of the scheme and how to take it forward for wider gains to the community.

The Benefits to the Existing Road and Transportation Systems

Transport Consultants have undertaken an initial transport appraisal to review existing accessibility in the local area and identify improvements to the sustainable transport infrastructure as part of the proposed development. The assessment also outlines the benefits of the creation of a western bypass. The Study Area is well located to encourage use of a variety of sustainable modes of transport. The masterplan recognises that the provision of three local centres located across the Study Area would improve and encourage more sustainable and healthier modes of travel. The Movement Framework shows strong connections into existing pedestrian/cycle routes within the local area such as Laceby Acres and Wybers Wood as well as the Healing Pedal Way route and demonstrates the opportunity to introduce a new bus route centrally positioned within the development linking one of the proposed local centres adjacent to the B1210 northern access to the A46 via the southern section of the relief road. The proposed alignment of the relief road has been determined by the appropriate engineering standards. It is envisaged to be a 7.3 metre wide single carriageway with a 2.5 metre combined footway/cycleway on the eastern side. It would be designed to accommodate a speed limit of 50mph. The initial phases of the relief road construction would establish the junctions (on the A46 to the south and on the B1210 to the north) from which would develop a network of secondary and tertiary roads. Internal residential loop roads would be formed off the proposed Relief Road as each phase of the development progresses.

6 The assessment shows the Relief Road would alleviate pressure on the existing highway network. The tables here, extracted from the transport consultants’ conclusions, show there would be a reduction in traffic on currently congested routes of between 21% and 27% in the AM Peak Hour and between 25% and 30% in the PM Peak Hour, bringing significant reductions in congestion. As just one example, the Bradley Crossroads is anticipated to improve from Category 2 ‘Over Capacity’ to Category 4 ‘Spare Capacity exists at junction’ across both AM and PM Peak Hours.

Opportunities for Improvements to the Drainage of the Area

Drainage Consultants have made preliminary investigations regarding surface water and foul water discharge for development. The proposed development areas of the study site are located within Flood Zone 1 (low probability) from fluvial and tidal sources. Running through the site is Freshney Valley and there are sections of Flood Zone 2 (medium probability) and 3a (high probability) related to the Laceby Beck. Given the space available within the study site it is not anticipated that these higher risk Flood Zones will place any restriction on development. An attenuated system is proposed to manage and store surface water drainage run off to limit flows to the existing greenfield run off rate plus an allowance for the potential effects of climate change. It has been calculated that a significant attenuation volume of approximately 56,450m³ will be required across the proposal. Within the initial Concept Framework, approximately 10% of each developable area has been set aside for surface water drainage features to accommodate this volume provision. A sustainable drainage system (SUDS) would not only provide a positive solution to the storage and treatment of surface water but can also provide landscape, biodiversity and amenity value through the provision of retention measures, balancing ponds, wetlands and lagoons within the development. Anglian Water have identified two potential solutions for the disposal of foul flows. The first was for all flows to discharge to a single strategic pumping station within the future development before conveying flows directly to Pyewipe Sewage Treatment Works to the north. The second was for properties south of Aylesby Road to discharge to a 1,050mm diameter trunk sewer to the east of the study area with properties north of Aylesby Road requiring a strategic solution taking flows directly to Pyewipe STW.

7 Protecting the Existing Ecology

Preliminary ecological analysis has been carried out and the key elements that have been taken into account are as follows:  The study area has been found to be of generally low ecological value based on its supporting predominantly arable farming which is likely to have a very low value to wildlife.  Within the Freshney Valley, a habitat alongside the Laceby Beck includes the Mauds Hole/Wybers Carr Plantation SNCI which is a wet woodland. This habitat connects into the Towns Holt SNCI and Freshney Bog (a Nature Conservation Reserve) both of which are designated for their wetland habitat. The assessment work would suggest that the ecological integrity of these wetlands is suffering due to the level of disturbance from human activity. Through appropriate management regimes, there would be an opportunity to improve and protect these sensitive habitats as part of the overall scheme.  The small woodland copse in the northern part of the site is likely to be of value to breeding birds and potential roosting bats and the hedgerows are likely to support common farmland, bird species. However, none of these are priority habitats but where possible they will be retained within the overall design.  The site lies adjacent to the Wybers Wood SNCI and care will taken to enhance this habitat and protect it from the impact of nearby development by the incorporation of appropriate management measures.

Improving the Landscape Character of the Area

Landscape consultants have carefully evaluated the ways of minimising the impact of the development on the rural edge of Grimsby. The development presents opportunities to soften the urban edge and improve the landscape setting of the town. The location of new development has been planned to be contained within the landform and new planting, ensuring that the current sharp edge of the urban area is replaced with a gentler landscape.

8 Fulfilling education and community requirements

It is proposed to locate three local centres across the Study Area with a school and local centre at the northern end and a larger local centre at the southern end. A centrally positioned local centre would also be provided within the Freshney Springs character area. It is intended that these Local Centres would ensure that the urban extension becomes sustainable and will accommodate such uses as community/health facilities as well as retail and leisure provision to serve not only the new residents but enhance provision of additional facilities within the local neighbourhood.

At the present stage assumptions have been made about the needs for education and community facilities within the development. These will be refined in association with the Local Authority to ensure that the development incorporates the needs of the community either by provision or funding.

The Freshney valley offers considerable scope for the creation of a multi-functional recreation area ranging from enjoyment of the water features by anglers, through providing informal landscaped parkland with footpaths, cycleways and bridleways, to the structured requirements of organised sports.

Availability of the Evidence Base At the of end of this document the details of the survey work carried out to date are listed. All the reports have been supplied to the Council for assistance in assessing the viability of the proposals in the context of the New Local Plan.

We recognise that further detailed studies will be required to follow up the initial consideration that has been given. If the acceptance of the principle of a sustainable urban extension in this location emerges from the Council’s plan making process, the land owners will work alongside the Council to ensure that information to demonstrate the deliverability of a viable and environmentally acceptable scheme will be made available .

9 Developing the Plan Using the information gathered, the landowners have drawn up a draft masterplan to illustrate and quantify the principles of the site’s development. This plan is designed to address the issues of the amount of infrastructure involved in the creation of the western relief road and the form and size of the new neighbourhoods. It is intended as a starting point to guide the dialogue between the community and all the agencies involved in meeting the need for the growth of Grimsby.

To enable delivery of a sustainable urban extension the following principles underpin the proposals: -

Development should be set within a strong green infrastructure network which breaks up the built form, protects and enhances ecological corridors, allows space for sustainable urban drainage and provides opportunities for sport and recreation.

Movement and connectivity are integrated into the proposals at an early stage ensuring public transport is within 400m of all new housing, safe and direct pedestrian and cycle routes (separated from roads) are created and new facilities and services are centrally located.

A vision for the area is developed which seeks to create distinctive communities rather than housing estates, that have a sense of place and identity, fostering a sense of ownership amongst residents.

A team of professionals, including transportation consultants, drainage engineers, landscape architects and urban planners have produced an integrated draft masterplan which meets these objectives and provides initial solutions for the required infrastructure and community facilities.

The study area has been analysed and a series of frameworks were provided which identified various priorities for green infrastructure, opportunities to make connections and ideas for the creation of distinctive places.

10 Green Infrastructure

 Enhance the valley to create a multi-functional green corridor which preserves ecological interest and provides opportunities for sport and recreation.

 Retain all the existing woodland in the area to provide parts of the new development with an attractive setting and create breaks inthe development.

 Incorporate sustainable urban drainage (SUDS) in small ponds and swales integrated into the streets/communities to enhance their appearance.

 Provide screening woodland along the western edge of the study area and carry out planting within the main body of the development to create a sensitive transition from the countryside into the town similar to the northern edge of Great Coates.

Movement and Connections

 Deliver a western relief road around the edge of the study area to aid the free flow of existing traffic on the A1136 & A46 and serve the new development.

 Provide new local centres and schools along the public transport corridor which are connected to pedestrian and cycle links.

 Extend the Healing Pedalway and create new attractive green routes for pedestrians and cyclists, separated from cars, which integrate with Wybers Wood and Laceby Acres.

 Create a public transport corridor through the heart of the study area so that all new homes are within 5 minutes walk of a bus route for easy access to and from the town.

11 Placemaking The existing features of Wybers Wood and the Freshney river valley create natural divides which will allow four new communities to develop with their own identities. They will be linked to each other and the current communities by public transport, footpaths and cycleways through attractive green corridors, allowing everyone access to existing and proposed educational, community and local shopping facilities. The character of each of the new communities will emerge as they are planned in more detail with the examples below demonstrating the scope for the creation of separate identities.

Church Fields A low density and high quality extension to Great Coates with a mix of building styles including the conversion of existing buildings at Church Farm, respecting the Conservation Area, and giving the impression it has developed incrementally over time.

St. Nicholas View A high quality new development with a traditional, semi rural appearance, with a ’community hub’ including a village store and primary school respecting the Great Coates Conservation Area and set within a mature woodland landscape.

Freshney Springs A sustainable, community focused character area where water and green corridors are a key theme with swales integrated into the streets and where the Freshney valley becomes an integral part of the community.

Laceby Holt A modern and contemporary urban community well connected to an extended hub of facilities including a /restaurant, local shops, community facilities and the existing supermarket.

12 The Concept Masterplan The constraints and opportunities have been brought together to form the Concept Masterplan which will deliver the western relief road as the spine of a sustainable urban extension comprising around 3,000 new homes, primary schools, retail/community facilities and the opportunity to facilitate ‘park & ride’. The masterplan respects the natural environment and the built form of Great Coates, creating a softer edge to Wybers Wood and Laceby Acres and a natural transition from the countryside to the town.

13 The Way Forward Using the draft masterplan as a starting point, the landowners want to be able to refine their proposals in association with all parties to get to a point where a viable scheme can be adopted by the Planning Authority as a key component of their proposals within the New Local Plan.

To achieve this aim, responses to the proposals are needed to quantify the land and resource requirements of the infrastructure and community needs, particularly in relation to the aspirations of the Council in relation to transportation, education and recreation.

When these are known, the landowners will respond with further commitment to funding an assessment of the viability of the scheme and work in partnership with the authority to provide evidence of the deliverability of the scheme to carry it forward into successive stages of the New Local Plan.

Points of Contact The owners’ representatives

Robert White Niel Strawson

Property Director Director Sir Richard Sutton's Settled Estates M F Strawson Ltd 14 Bolton Street Pyewipe Farm Piccadilly Aylesby Road, Great Coates, W1J 8BF Grimsby DN37 9NU Tel: 020 7493 0545 Tel: 01472 887353

The planning agents

For Sir Richard Sutton's Settled Estates For M F Strawson Ltd

James Hobson John Steedman Signet Planning Steedman Planning Rowe House, 10 East Parade 30 Tournament Way Harrogate HG1 5LT Ashby-de-la-Zouch LE65 2UU Tel: 01423 857510 Tel: 01530 411883

14 Technical Appendices The following technical documents have been submitted to the Council with a view to the Authority’s officers responding to them as a basis for continuing discussion.

Master Planning Documents Density and Capacity Framework, Green Infrastructure Framework, Movement and Capacity Framework plans, combined to produce the draft Masterplan.

Authors: Signet Planning (contact: Richard Walshaw) Rowe House, 10 East Parade Harrogate HG1 5LT Tel: 01423 857510

Transportation Assessment and Proposals Consideration of wider transport considerations for all modes, analysis of existing traffic conditions, prediction of future network performance, design of route of the Western Relief Road, assessment of junctions.

Authors: BWB (contact: David Cummins) Waterfront House 35 Station Street Nottingham NG2 3DQ Tel: 0115 924 1100

Foul and Surface Water Drainage, Flood Risk Assessment and Proposals Consideration of existing surface water and foul drainage capacities, flood risk assessment, preliminary assessment of infrastructure requirements for drainage of the proposed development

Authors: BWB (contact: Tony Goodchild) Waterfront House 35 Station Street Nottingham NG2 3DQ Tel: 0115 924 1100

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Landscape Assessment Analysis and categorisation of existing landscape of the study area, assessment of impact of proposals mitigation of impact of existing and proposed development upon adjoining countryside

Authors: Smeeden Foreman (contact: Catherine Xavier) House Low Moor Lane Scotton Knaresborough HG5 9JB Tel: 01423 863369

Ecology 1.Baseline study of existing flora and fauna within Freshney valley

Authors: URS Scott Wilson (contact: Ryan Mellor) Chetwynd Business Park 12 Regan Way Chilwell Nottingham NG9 6RZ 0115 907 7000

2. Ecological Assessment – Land off Aylesby Road, Great Coates (BE/R/1129/01) November 2011

Authors: BE Brooks Ecological Limited (contact: Peter Brooks) High Street House 2 High Street Yeadon Leeds LS19 7PP 0113 250 6101

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