Comments for Planning Application 21/502751/OUT

Application Summary Application Number: 21/502751/OUT Address: Gibraltar Farm Ham Lane Hempsted Gillingham Road ME7 3JJ Proposal: Outline Application (with all matters reserved except access) for the erection of up to 450 market and affordable dwellings, nursery and supporting retail space up to 85sqm, with provision of main access to Ham Lane; estate roads; cycle and pedestrian routes; residential and community open space and landscaping; new junction for Lidsing Road/Hempstead Road and realignment and widening of Lidsing Road. Off site related highway works to Westfield Sole Road, Shawstead Road, Hempstead Road, Chapel Lane, Hempstead Valley Drive, Hoath Way roundabout, Hoath Way and M2 Junction 4. (Resubmission of 19/500765/OUT) Case Officer: Marion Geary

Customer Details Name: Mrs Elizabeth Pell Address: 44 Lakewood Drive, Wigmore, Gillingham ME8 0NS

Comment Details Commenter Type: Neighbour Stance: Customer objects to the Planning Application Comment Reasons: Comment:44 Lakewood Drive, Wigmore, Gillingham, Kent, ME8 0NS 18th June 2021

For the Attention of Planning Department

I am writing to object to Maidstone Council's proposed Gibraltar Farm development 21/502751/OUT (Resubmission of 19/500765/OUT) Site Address: Gibraltar Farm Ham Lane Hempstead Gillingham Boxley Road Walderslade Kent ME7 3JJ For almost nine years I have had an allotment at the Chapel Lane site, close to the proposed Gibraltar Farm development. My route from home takes me through the beautiful area of , in a known Area of Oustanding Natural Beauty (AONB), past farmland alongside Lidsing Road, which is the site of this proposed development. During the several thousand journeys I have made to my allotment during this period, I have been recording the wildlife I have seen in Bredhurst Village, the fields and on my adjacent allotment. I am protesting against the Gibraltar Farm development 21/502751/OUT for the following reasons.

1 Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty The area of the development is on the North Downs and has Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) status. Permitted Development is restricted on Article 2(3) land, which includes AONBs. The AONB surrounds the small rural village of Bredhurst, which had a population of 397 during the 2011 census. The proposed development would totally ruin this area of Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

2 Air Quality and urbanisation of a rural area The planned Gibraltar Farm development would build on a rural area which is part of Gillingham's 'green lung'. This area is vital for maintaining air quality in Gillingham within the legal limits and preventing the urban areas of Lordswood and Hempstead forming one huge urban area. The traffic created by this proposed development of 450 houses would be detrimental to the air quality of the surrounding area and the allotment site, especially as many homeowners now have more than one car.

3 Flooding It was recently brought to my attention that work had to be undertaken in Bredhurst Village to stop further flooding events. The proposed development of 450 houses would necessitate covering a large area of the current agricultural site with concrete and other impermeable surfaces, which would contribute to further flooding.

4 Poor access and roads The roads in and around the proposed development site are barely passable for two cars and some are narrow enough to need passing places, as in Ham Lane. These country lanes are totally unsuitable for the volume of traffic that would result from the proposed 450 new homes and as they have no pavements, the majority of journeys would need to be by car, for safety reasons. How would all the construction traffic access the site, bearing in mind how narrow these lanes are? The traffic and construction would cause unacceptable noise and disturbance to neighbouring residents and wildlife. What affect would the construction materials and possible dust have on the edible crops grown on the nearby Chapel Lane allotment site? The area of the proposed development gets gridlocked at the junction of Lidsing and Hempstead Road, when Boot Fairs are held on Sunday mornings. The extra traffic from the development would only compound this problem on weekdays, when everyone is trying to get to work or school. The planning application states that several roads adjacent to and in the area surrounding the proposed development will be widened or be subject to highway works. I was concerned to see that the following roads mentioned for attention are in Medway Council's jurisdiction: Hempstead Road, Chapel Lane (bounded on both sides by houses), Hempstead Valley Drive, Hoath Way roundabout, Hoath Way and M2 junction 4. I hope I am correct in assuming that the plans are not referring to the old Chapel Lane, which was closed off many years ago and is now partly covered by the woodland adjacent to the allotment site. Widening of the roads would necessitate the removal of hedgerows and possibly trees.

5 Hospital capacity The site of the proposed development is much closer to Medway Hospital than Maidstone Hospital and so it is likely that residents may prefer to use Medway Hospital. Medway Hospital already serves a population of 424,000 in Medway and Swale and is struggling to cope with demand, as evidenced by having to redirect ambulances on occasions. On 18th December 2020 patients were being sent to other counties, as all of Kent and Medway's Hospitals had exceeded their maximum capacity. The proposed additional 450 houses and their residents would put an additional strain on hospital services already at breaking point.

6 School capacity As the proposed development is much closer to Medway than Maidstone, residents are likely to prefer to send their children to school in Medway. Do the primary and secondary schools in Medway have the capacity for the additional children from the Gibraltar Farm development, in addition to developments already planned by Medway Council?

7 General Practitioner and Dental services Residents of the proposed Gibraltar Farm development could put further strain on already oversubscribed services, as they may choose to use services in Medway than travel much further to Maidstone.

8 Shops Are there any shopping facilities in Lordswood for the residents? There are no pavements on Ham Lane, Lidsing Road or Hempstead Road, so it would be unsafe to walk to Hempstead Valley shopping centre, necessitating car journeys.

9 Destruction of habitat and adverse effects on wildlife. Skylarks breed on the fields either side of Lidsing Road, where the Gibraltar Farm development is planned. Sky Larks are a Red Listed Species of Conservation Concern. During the past nine years my husband and I have been entering our bird sightings on the British Trust for Ornithology BirdTrack database. Other Red Listed bird species recorded in recent years on the site of the proposed development and neighbouring areas are: Cuckoo, Fieldfare, Garden Warbler, Grey Wagtail, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Linnet, Marsh Tit, Mistle Thrush, Redwing, Song Thrush, Starling, Yellowhammer, Yellow Wagtail, and Woodcock. In addition, in recent years we have recorded the following Amber Listed Species of Conservation Concern on the site of the proposed development and neighbouring areas: Dunnock, House Martin, Kestrel, Meadow Pipit, Mediterranean Gull, Stock Dove, Tawny Owl, Willow Warbler and Swift. Tawny Owls were heard in South Wood during our survey for the BTO. In the same development area we have recorded the following species: Blackbird, Blackcap, Black-headed Gull, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Chiffchaff, Coal Tit, Collared Dove, Goldcrest, Goldfinch, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Greenfinch, Grey Heron (flew over), Jackdaw, Jay, Long-tailed Tit, Magpie, Marsh Harrier, Mute Swan (flew over), Nuthatch, Pheasant, Pied/White Wagtail, Reed Warbler, Red Kite, Red-legged Partridge, Robin, Rock Dove, Rook, Sparrowhawk, Swallow, Treecreeper, Whitethroat, Woodpigeon and Wren. The proposed Gibraltar Farm development is close to woodland at Walderslade Woods and South Wood and there are nearby ancient woodlands such as Bredhurst Wood, Monkdown Wood, Church Wood and the small woodland by Hempstead Valley shopping centre. These provide excellent breeding habitat for many species of birds, mammals, reptiles and insects, as do other adjacent areas of woodland. The hedgerows provide access from one area of woodland to another, enhancing habitat continuity. The farmland provides suitable habitat for many additional species which either breed or feed there. Mammals known to use the surrounding areas, and submitted to Kent Mammal Group, include: Badger, Bank Vole, Bats (seen before dusk), Fox, Grey Squirrel, Hedgehog, Mole, Rabbit, Weasel and Wood Mouse. Hazel Dormouse are largely restricted to southern and have been recorded during spring 2021 in Bredhurst Woods, plus two sites 1 to 2 km from the proposed development and are known to have been present in South Wood nearby. Frogs breed on the Chapel Lane Allotment site and are likely to be in ponds nearby. In Day Valley, Adders and Slow worms have been seen in 2021. My husband and I have photographed and recorded the following dragonfly species on the nearby Chapel Lane allotment site: Azure Damselfly, Broad-bodied Chaser, Common Darter, Large Red Damselfly, Migrant Hawker and Southern Migrant Hawker. We have also sent insect records to iRecord for the following species: several species of Hover Fly Volucella inanis, Syritta pipiens, Helophilus trivittatus, Eristalis arbustorum, Myathropa florea, Episyrphus balteatus, Scaeva pyrastri, Sphaerophoria scripta and Eristalis pertinax, a Spider Hunting Wasp (Pompilidae), Violet Carpenter Bee, Lesser Stag Beetle, Field Grasshopper, Speckled Bush Cricket, Dock Bug, Swollen-thighed Beetle, Stenurella melanura, Knot Grass Moth, Dark Spinach Moth, Toadflax Brocade moth, Platycheirus sp, Tachina fera, Nowickia ferox, Wool Carder Bee, Large Red-tailed Bumblebee, Buff-tailed bumble bee, Tree Bumblebee and ladybirds.

Due to lockdown, we were unable to undertake Butterfly Conservation's 2020 one km Butterfly Transect, which includes Elmcourt, adjacent to the proposed Gibraltar Farm development. However in 2020 we photographed and recorded the following species of butterfly on the nearby Chapel Lane Allotment site: Clouded Yellow, Brimstone, Large White, Small White, Green-veined White, Small Copper, Common Blue, Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Comma, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Orange Tip and Small Heath. Additional butterfly species seen in Day Valley included Grizzled Skipper, Marbled White and Ringlet and a Small Skipper was seen in the nearby horse paddock. Moth species recorded on the allotment site include Cinnibar caterpillars and Silver Y moth. Moths seen in Day Valley and Bredhurst Woods include a Copper Underwing, Riband Wave and a Burnet or Cinnibar Moth. It isn't physically possible to operate a moth trap in Bredhurst Woods or at the allotment site but in our Wigmore garden we have recorded just under two hundred moth species. I would expect that the area of the proposed development would also have a considerable number of moth species. In April 2020 I took on another plot on the Chapel Lane Allotment site and recorded the herbaceous plants growing there. This could be indicative of the seed bank in the field where the Gibraltar Farm development is proposed, as the allotment site was a wheat field nine years ago. I have an interest in Botany but do not know which of these recorded species could be of conservation concern: Cirsium sp (not in flower), Taraxacum sp, Pentaglottis sempervirens, Sonchus oleraceus, Picris echiodes, Rumex acetosa, Mecurialis perennis, Crepis capillaris, Plantago major, Lactuca serriola, Geranium robertianum, Geranium sp (old leaves scarlet and green), Senecio vulgaris, Ranunculus ?acris, Polygonum aviculare, Geranium pyrenaicum, Lamium purpureum, Galium aparine, Capsella bursa-pastoris agg, Arabidopsis thaliana, Medicago lupulina, Matricaria perforata, Convolvulus arvensis, Chenopodium album, Stellaria media, Cerastium fontanum, Malva sp, Veronica chamaedrys, Veronica persica, Epilobium montanum, Leucanthemum vulgare, Silene dioca, Cardamine hirsute, Mysotis arvensis, Papaver rhoeas, Papaver sp (grey-green leaves), Scrophularia nodosa, Vicia sativa, Epilobium parvifloum, Sonchus arvensis and an umbellifer similar to Wild Carrot. Additional wild flower species grow on my original plot taken on almost nine years ago. The Wood Anemones in the adjacent woods are indicative of ancient woodland. The above records show that the area of the proposed Gibraltar Farm development and the neighbouring areas, are long established habitats for a substantial number of Red Listed Species of Conservation Concern and for many other species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and insects. I strongly object to Maidstone Council's proposed Gibraltar Farm development 21/502751/OUT for the following reasons. It is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and air quality in the Medway towns would deteriorate due to urbanisation of this rural area. The development area has poor access and narrow roads. Medway Hospital, local schools, GPs and dental capacity are already overstretched and would be unable to cater for the residents of the proposed 450 houses. Trips to Hempstead Valley shopping centre would necessitate car journeys, because of the lack of pavements on the narrow roads. The proposed development would destroy important habitat and be detrimental to many species, at least fifteen of which are Red Listed Species of Conservation Concern.

Yours faithfully,

Elizabeth Ann Pell BA(Hons)