“The Dump” is nearby, which was mentioned on day one as a place that needs a bit of attention!

“The Dump” is a derelict space that is in need of change. Several of the presentations from locals (on the morning of day one) suggested a re-envisioned a sports space including the school children’s suggestion of a quad-bike track!

184 Beltring Station is a 10-15 minute walk from the Chequers Inn, but the lack of footway on Gravelly Ways Delivering a desirable footway along Gravelly Ways makes it feel like an unsafe will make the walking route to the station much more and unpleasant journey. direct and a lot safer and more pleasant.

185 There is currently no dedicated drop-off point or welcoming entrance onto the Beltring station platforms.

Improving this immediate access will help encourage better use of the space and station.

If travelling by car, this small entrance provides no place to easily drop people off. 186 There is room for temporary parking and a more defined entrance, however this is private land. Landowner agreement Parking-up just outside is would be needed to do anything. not permitted, as the land is private property.

(as we found out!)

187 Moving back into Laddingford, the group asked what could be done with the open land behind St. Mary’s Primary School? How can the neighbourhood plan accommodate potential expansion of the school in the future? Can the land behind St. Mary’s Primary School be used for parking?

188 Residents of this row of houses use the road to park their cars as they have nowhere else. Although this may slow passing vehicles down through a narrowing of the road it can create frustration for some drivers.

Could the old Teiside Nursery land opposite be used for additional parking?

189 This field, south of St. Mary’s Close, has the potential to provide space for new development within Laddingford. The group assessed the various access points and their suitability.

Back in the heart of Laddingford. Could this field could provide land for new housing?

190 Allocating new development within Laddingford would help to ease the pressure upon Yalding and help “rebalance” the two settlements.

Another entrance to the field from the end of St. Mary’s Close. But what would the impact be upon the surrounding cluster of houses?

191 This field is of a good size and location. The layout of any new housing that may be proposed here will need to reflect the existing character of the area, whilst having the potential to bring in new architectural features.

A lot of space! Could there be housing along the road or further back in the field? Or both?

192 Laddingford

This sketch plan was produced during the second day of the design forum to capture the range of ideas • Small Affordable for Laddingford: Housing Infill?

• Campsite? 1. Campsite or small housing infill on the nursery site. Improved Chequers walking link 2. Small infill housing to station opposite the school. Better on-road provision for 3. Improved “green” link to walkers. Beltring station.

Small Affordable Jubilee Field Housing Infill?

School

193 Site Visit Two Yalding & Vicarage Road

Day Two Afternoon

A third group focused their second day site visit around Yalding and Vicarage Road. 194 wildlife!

The group wondered if the caterpillar would wriggle across the plan and find them a suitable housing site. Alas, Map reading. it stayed right on the boundary and would not move!

195 Could the derelict Curley’s Site that sits to the south west of Yalding be considered as a potential new development site? As brownfield land, it has priority under the NPPF.

Curley’s Site. An old builder’s yard. Is this a place for high density, high quality design?

196 The site is surrounded by a fairly dense collection of 2-3 storey residential buildings and could be suitable for good quality infill development.

Curley’s Site

197 As already noted, the link between Oast Court and Yalding’s High Street is an important pedestrian link that needs be kept open and made public.

Private drive

Important link to land behind

198 Only limited car access.

Vehicles can be driven along this path but the narrow width and limited number of vehicles ensure that this path to The Kintons remains a quiet and safe walking link.

199 St. Mary’s Church yard backs onto the path and sits adjacent to the Vicarage Road potential development site. A sequence of green spaces was starting to open up and reveal itself.

Old Church yard.

200 School gates. Yalding Primary School backs onto the path and its own green space is visible through the railings.

201 expansion room?

There is room for some expansion of the church New church yard. yard but what happens when it’s full? Could there be provision elsewhere? Does more land adjacent to need to be preserved to accommodate this?

However, this is another lovely green space as part of the chain of spaces… and then…

202 … the group arrived at the site for 65 new 65 new homes here? homes. This paddock and open space feel like it belongs to a wider network of spaces when approaches from the west. The MBC Local Plan allocation does not appear to acknowledge this.

203 School building The allotments are well- used and well-loved. They will be immediately adjacent to the new housing, somewhat overshadowed.

Allotments.

204 This is Maidstone Borough Council’s proposed vehicular access point onto and from Vicarage Road.

Access point.

205 This is the footpath as it emerges from south of Vicarage Road development site onto the Kintons access track.

Link through to Kintons track.

206 A mature green landscape lines the track that leads onto the recreational grounds of the Kintons. Any increased use of this lane, such as access to new development, needs a sensitive design approach that maintains the current quality. But is it simply too narrow for any such increased use?

Access to the Kintons recreational area.

207 The turning into the Kintons is from Vicarage Road.

Access to the Kintons recreational area.

208 The narrowness of the entrance from Vicarage Road is only one car wide. This leads some to believe that it is simply not possible to use this any more intensively than at present, either to access new housing or access an expanded recreational provision.

Access to the Kintons recreational area.

209 A popular open space for dog-walkers, the recreation ground may become more intensely used with an increase in village population.

Kintons recreational area

210 The play area is very popular but lacks the variety of equipment local children want to see.

Kintons recreational area.

211 The Kintons recreational space is edged with a mature green landscape. It is this edge that would be affected by the housing concept shown on slides 129 - 133.

Kintons recreational area.

212 Could this land to the east of the existing Kintons become additional recreational land? It is already relatively flat and could be converted to sports pitches.

Can this be acquired as additional recreational land?

213 Any new development, either housing or a new sports pavilion will need to consider potential impact upon this Grade II listed Warde’s Moat building. That said, good quality design could complement this Grade II listed building. heritage asset.

214 Different points of access into new development will need to be considered for their suitability and impact upon existing parts of Yalding.

Access track from the east.

215 Different points of access into an expanded Kintons area will help spread the load. Could this track allow limited vehicle access to a new sports pavilion?

Access track leading towards Mill Lane.

216 Blunden Lane

The group also visited the end of Blunden Lane to assess opportunity for development here.

217 The current ends to Blunden Lane open into an overgrown wooded area, but the design forum was told this is not particularly special woodland with little ecological value.

End of Blunden Lane.

218 Longer distance views

The land here is elevated, affording views to the south.

End of Blunden Lane.

219 Although houses along this street have driveways and garages, the road is wide enough to have cars parking in the street and on pavements. Would this situation present an access problem to any new development on the cleared woodland area?

End of Blunden Lane.

220 Vicarage Road

The group then began to walk back along Vicarage Road. Here, the edge of the road has no dedicated footway and appears poorly maintained. The group waked on the raised grass verge instead.

221 There are many different architectural styles along Vicarage Road; timber cladding, tiled roofs, terrace cottages and small Vicarage Road. front gardens with off-road parking to the side. Vicarage Road contains a wide variety of architectural styles and eras… as can be seen in the following slides.

222 This property is in a gothic style with the detailed window panes, arches Vicarage Road. and a prominent thatched roof.

223 Vicarage Road.

This is an example of new development that reflects a local vernacular of brickwork and timber with shallow pitches to the roofs.

224 This example of more modern architecture is Vicarage Road. hidden away behind mature landscaping. What role will more striking, contemporary designs play in the future of the village? Should they remain one-offs? Or become more widespread?

225 An assessment Paddock Wood technique for Street Scene Analysis Vicarage Road?

A “street scene analysis” that the consultancy team at Feria Urbanism recently carried out in Paddock Wood could be a good be a good technique to be applied to Vicarage Road as it helps capture the wide variety of styles that can be found.

226 Paddock Wood Street Scene Analysis

A “street scene analysis” that the consultancy team at Feria Urbanism recently carried out in Paddock Wood could be a good be a good technique to be applied to Vicarage Road as it helps capture the wide variety of styles that can be found.

227 Creating a linear photo record of this type would help assess the architectural and layout features that characterise Vicarage Road. This could help build a convincing argument about form and character and then help inform the argument about why the development of 65 homes on land south would be damaging to this particular character.

228 Parish Wide Plan Policies & Projects

Summary

As the design forum drew to a close, a summary of the policies and projects was brought together. 229 Parish Wide Concept Plan

Yalding

Settlement catchments. Laddingford

This diagram shows the “settlement catchments” for Laddingford and Yalding. The inner circle is 500m across while the other one is 1000m across. This helps to show that Yalding and Laddingford were historically built within walking distance of one another but far enough apart to be independent.

230 Parish Wide Concept Plan

If and when the Ex-Syngenta is redeveloped, the parish effectively adds a third, new Yalding community to the mix. Ex-Syngenta

How will this affect the balance of activities and movement? What can the neighbourhood plan do to influence its design and development?

A third settlement? Laddingford Understand how your Neighbourhood Plan can shape and influence the Syngenta site.

231 Climate Change

Yalding parish has experienced flooding in the recent past and future development proposals need to remain aware of this, in particular the Syngenta site.

232 Syngenta, Christmas Day 2013

This image (provided by a participant at the design forum) shows the extent to which the Syngenta site was flooded in 2013. Developing on floodplains is not impossible but it does come with added costs to help fund the necessary design and engineering required to help manage and respond to these conditions. 233 Parish Wide Action Plan

Ex-Syngenta Planning Yalding Landscape Architecture Conservation Engineering The design forum generated a series of projects and policies, each one represented by a dot or line on the plan. Broadly, these can be categorised around the PLACE professions, as used earlier in the process. Policy & Project Types Laddingford • Cataloguing the different areas of focus. Beltring Station

• Each dot/line is potentially a specific NDP policy point.

234 Parish Wide Action Plan : NORTH These are the key areas of focus in and around Yalding…

Planning Landscape Yalding Architecture ?? Conservation Engineering • Housing sites? • Housing numbers?

?? ??

?? ??

Syngenta

• What mix? • What architectural approach? • What access arrangements? Kintons

235 Parish Wide Action Plan : SOUTH … while these are the key areas of focus in and around Laddingford.

Planning Landscape Architecture Conservation Laddingford Engineering Campsite?

Landscape Protection

Footpath Link ?? Small affordable housing site Beltring Station • Missing sections? • High tech lighting? • Footways? • Calm Lanes?

236 The previous diagrams made it clear the Yalding Parish Wide Neighbourhood Plan will not comprise just one or two big ideas….

The big “master plan” Wait too long? Too expensive? 237 …. but will instead provide the bigger picture for a wide variety of small projects to all successfully contribute towards.

Lots of small dabs of paint? Creating a bigger picture. 238 What Next?

• You now have a good set of ingredients for your plan. This slide set out the stages that the Yalding Parish Wide Neighbourhood Plan process needs to go through next. • Clear sense direction for the engagement with MBC.

• Relationship between the settlements is better understood. Yalding Parish Council

239 What Next?

• Further testing of the ideas. This slide set out the stages that the Yalding Parish Wide • Vital to get the planners at MBC to Neighbourhood Plan process needs to go through next. understand and support your plan… but it is still your plan!

• Need to know just how much you can still challenge the MBC Local Yalding Plan. Parish Council

240 What Next?

• Wealden Homes offer of community land? Does this help or This slide set out the stages that the Yalding Parish Wide distract from the plan? Neighbourhood Plan process needs to go through next.

• Laddingford infill sites need wider community engagement.

• Links to Beltring station. Yalding Parish Council

241 The design forum was considered a success with lots of ideas generated and many issues discussed in depth.

Much progress was made developing a consensus around many of the main themes and this will be vital for the process moving forward from here.

• Lots of progress.

• It’s been an intensive and thought-provoking few days.

• Lots of energy and enthusiasm Thank from all those involved. You!

242 While the final presentation Final thought – “One tree, many leaves” was underway, a child in the room had been busy drawing a picture and writing words about the future of the parish. This was read out to the “One tree, many leaves audience at the end of the There’s one village but many of us, we are all one team! final presentation and the end of the second day’s. It It is all of our choices was a wonderful way to end What do we want our village to be? So what do you want? the two days. Our village could be anything!”

243