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Hart District Council Local Plan Site Assessment: Stage 2 – High Level Site Assessment – SHL086 Site of Old Brick Works, Rotherwick Confidential Draft – 25/02/2015 – Version 1.0 High Level Site Assessment Proforma Site Reference SHL086 Site Name Site of Old Brick Works Parish Rotherwick Site Address Reading Road, Rotherwick Capacity Assessment and Categorisation Site Size (ha) 7.2 Estimated Capacity 130 Comments on capacity Housing Strategy Category(s) 6 (Other) or 3 (Strategic Urban Land Supply Category D (Site not adjoining existing urban areas) or E (Strategic Extension) as part of STR002 urban extension) as part of STR002 Key to Site Assessments: No overriding constraint to development of the site Constraint requiring further detailed assessment Major constraint undermining suitability of site Site Assessment Assessment Criteria Assessment comments Coloured assessment Accessibility to • Bus Stop (A30/Griffin Way no. 1/2, 65X, 83 and 421) – 1,900m. All services provide only one or two buses a Employment and day. services • Railway Station (Hook) – 2,500m • Employment (Hook Business Parks) – 2,700m • Public Open Space (Hartlettʼs Park, Hook) – 2,000m. • Health facility (Hook Surgery) – 2,100m. • Primary School (Hook Junior School) – 2,400m. • Secondary School (Robert Mayʼs School, Odiham) – 6,100m • Supermarket (Tesco, Hook) – 2,700m Infrastructure • Schools: There is a projected (2018) surplus of 16% for Infant/Junior schools in the Hook/Odiham/Hartley provision Wintney area, including the planned expansion of Hook Infants by 1FE and Hook Junior School by 0.5 FE. However, this surplus will not be sufficient to provide school places for any significant development at Hook, and the HDC Infrastructure Delivery Plan (IDP) indicates that additional provision within Hook is required. For secondary schools the projected (2018) surplus capacity across Hart District is 9%, although the HDC IDP indicates that capacity expansions for Robert Mayʼs School will be needed. However, access to Robert Mayʼs School from Hook is poor due to the need to cross both the motorway and the railway which prevents cycling being a reasonable alternative. • Retail: The most recent evidence found that there is no pressing need to increase convenience and Adams Hendry Consulting Ltd 1 Hart District Council Local Plan Site Assessment: Stage 2 – High Level Site Assessment – SHL086 Site of Old Brick Works, Rotherwick Confidential Draft – 25/02/2015 – Version 1.0 comparison floorspace. However, some of Hartʼs supermarkets are overtrading (inc. Tesco in Hook) and there is a modest deficit in convenience floorspace. Therefore, additional housing, not already planned for will increase the need to expand retail floorspace (convenience and comparison) either in Fleet or potentially in Hook village centre. • Health: There are no planned expansions of health facilities in the Hook area, but it is likely that any significant level of development in the centre of the District will require additional provision. • Transport (road): From the available evidence, the key proposed road improvement affecting Hook is the capacity improvements planned for Junction 5 of the M3 Motorway. • Transport (other): The main bus services on the north side of Hook are the 1/2 (to Hartley Wintney, Yateley and Camberley), the 83 (To Hartley Wintney, Eversley and Yateley) and 421 (to Odiham, Fleet and Farnborough). However, each of these services offers only one or two buses a day, and are manly tailored towards school and college transport. The HCC Transport Statement notes a number of pedestrian and cycling improvements in the area, the most significant of which is the scheme to provide new route running parallel to the A30 linking Hook, Hartley Wintney and Winchfield. There is a further proposal to improve cycling routes from the north of Hook to the village centre and railway station, and a further proposal to create a new cycle route along the B3349 between Hook and Heckfield. • Green Infrastructure: The Hart Infrastructure Delivery Schedule highlights the replacement Hart Leisure Centre at Hitches Lane as a strategic project, for which development could help to address the deficit. In addition the HDC IDP identifies a need for open space, SANGs and allotments provision in Hook. Current Use and Current use is as agricultural land and woodland. Relevant Planning History No relevant planning history found. Nature Conservation Site is within the 5km Thames Basin Heaths SPA Zone of Influence. Any significant level of development on this site may go beyond the capacity of the Hitches Lane SANG to mitigate its potential impact on the TBH SPA and the Hook area is identified as deficient in SANGs capacity. Therefore it is anticipated that any significant development at the site would require the provision of appropriate additional SANGs, although this is not likely to be possible on a site of this scale. There are no nature conservation designations within the site although there is an area of woodland within the south of the site. Although this is likely to be secondary growth given the former use of the site as a brick works, it may contain species or habitats of significance and should be conserved if the site is developed. The western boundary of the site is defined by the large Street End Copse SINC and it would be important to avoid any harmful effects on this key biodiversity asset. Adams Hendry Consulting Ltd 2 Hart District Council Local Plan Site Assessment: Stage 2 – High Level Site Assessment – SHL086 Site of Old Brick Works, Rotherwick Confidential Draft – 25/02/2015 – Version 1.0 Minerals Resources The Hampshire Minerals and Waste Plan Policies Map indicates that there are no areas within the site that are subject to minerals safeguarding. Landscape HCC Integrated LCA (2012): Landscape type: Lowland mosaic small scale Landscape Character Area: Loddon Valley and Forest of Eversley West Hart District LCA 1997: Landscape type: Mixed farmland and woodland large scale Landscape Character Area: Tylney Main features of the Tylney LCA: A strong landscape structure of mixed farmland and numerous areas of woodland, now remnants of a once extensively wooded landscape. Enclosure of the landscape is also aided by the gently undulating landforms, which contain views. The LCA has a dispersed pattern of small settlements, north of Hook, which are linked by a sparse network of rural lanes, giving the LCA a remote and rural feel. Summary assessment: This site comprises a single large field, with a rectangular area of woodland at the south of the site. The site is relatively flat and is well enclosed on three sites by substantial areas of woodland. To the east, however, the site is largely open and it is possible that development on the site would be visible from the open countryside to the east, as far as the River Whitewater. However, this potential visual intrusion across the Whitewater Valley may be reduced by the fall in the height of land towards the river. Agricultural Land Agricultural land within the site has been assessed as entirley Grade 3. It is possible that the site contains some ʻbest and most versatileʼ (BMV) agricultural land, but this would need to be confirmed through survey. Heritage Assets The northwest of the site is adjacent to the Rotherwick Conservation Area (and accompanying Article 4 Direction). This area is also part of the protected vista / historic driveway of Tylney Hall and is designated as Historic Park and Garden and as an area of Archaeological Significance. Therefore, any development in the north or west of the site has the potential to cause harm to these designations. In addition, there are several Listed Buildings near to the site (all Grade II): • Two granaries at White House Farm within the cluster of farm buildings to the south of the site; • Bunkers Hill Cottage to the northeast of the site; and • The farmhouse and a Listed barn at Bunkers Hill farm to the east of the site. Water resources and There are no groundwater source protection zones or licensed water abstraction points in close proximity to the quality site. Adams Hendry Consulting Ltd 3 Hart District Council Local Plan Site Assessment: Stage 2 – High Level Site Assessment – SHL086 Site of Old Brick Works, Rotherwick Confidential Draft – 25/02/2015 – Version 1.0 Air Quality There are not believed to be any Air Quality Management Areas in close proximity to the site. On the basis of evidence seen, none of the surrounding land uses would be likely to cause any air quality issues for the site. Flood risk The site is entirely within Flood Zone 1 with no parts indicated by the Draft SFRA to be at risk of flooding from any source. Location and scale of This is a medium-sized site extending north from the Hook Road, to the west of the Reading Road. The site development appears to be greenfield, the wooded area may have had a historic industrial use as a brickworks, although this appears to have long been abandoned. The site is isolated within the countryside, approximately equidistant between Rotherwick to the northwest (700m) and Hook to the south (600m). Given its location, development at the site may lead to some increase of settlement coalescence between Rotherwick and Hook. Un-neighbourly Uses No un-neighbourly uses are evident. Availability The site is believed to be available, although as it was submitted as a SHLAA site some time ago, this would need Assessment to be confirmed with the landowner/site promoter. Site Access The site could be accessed from the Reading Road, north of the junction with Hook Road. Summary of • Site is entirely isolated within the countryside and has poor accessibility to a range of services and facilities; Constraints • Significant nature conservation and heritage constraints adjacent to the site; • Development on the site may lead to settlement coalescence between Hook and Rotherwick; • It is possible that the site contains some ʻbest and most versatileʼ (BMV) agricultural land; • Development on the site has the potential to cause a negative impact on landscape character and visual intrusion into the River Whitewater Valley; • The site is unlikely to be able to provide on-site SANGs and will be dependent on provision elsewhere to mitigate the impact on the SPA.

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