Upper College Farm, Mill Meadows

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12.2 It is possible to establish a course on soil which is of insufficient quality to sustain agricultural or horticultural crops provided that areas on which greens and tees are constructed are adequately provided with a fertile, well-drained top soil of at • • least 25 cm {10 inches) depth. Fairways should also have a cover of good turf, again with natural or man provided good drainage. A well designed layout which encompasses planting and landscaping will be sought, and every effort to retain natural existing areas such as along the river banks and around the pool should be made.

12.3 A club house and associated facilities should be unobtrusive and complementary of the surrounding scene. No other buildings, such as per1,1anent spectator stands, will be per,1,itted. Similarly, a more urban orientated golf use of, say a golf driving range, would not be permitted.

12.4 Once again, prime location for such a building and the associated car parking space of about an acre is in the natural bend of the river near the main site access, and has the same requirements as previously mentioned.

13. ~ors_e-riding

13.1 There will be a presumption against horse riding activity and commercial stabling on this site, so as not to increase• pressure on existing• • equestrian• facilities in the North Cray area which are already suffering from over-use. (Policy OL.9).

14. Water based activities

14. 1 An extension of water based activities, besides those carried out on the River Cray and in the a.ng ling lake, would be an attractive proposition for part of the site and could provide for a variety of recreation uses and be an attractive site feature. Part of the Upper College Far,11 in the vicinity of the removed willow copse has been re-excavated and these works could be extended to provide a larger water filled hole with associated contouring from the • excavated material . As well as providing directly for water based activities, such a development would provide an interesting waterfowl habitat, and also a feature of, say, the golf course.

15. River Cray Walk:

15.1 Some 1,280 metres of the River Cray passes through or borders the site . In accordance with Policy Rl2 of • the Borough Plan, the Council is anxious to secure

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the extension of the River Cray walk for public access, with that already established in the adjoining Foots Cray Meadows area. Any opportunity for a development of this kind will pursued, and the Council will consider providing assistance where

• • possible from such sources as the Environmental Improvement Fund, and in the fo:r11L of a positive Countryside Management project •

• 15.2 East of Water Lane the path would have to either cross Thames t'later land on the north bank or follow the southern bank alongside Woollett Hall Farm to a point just east of the pumping station and ford and then cross the river via a new bridge to the land of Upper College Farin.

15.3 On Upper College Far1,1 the path would have to run north of the trees which grow on the river bank. To put the path alongside the river itself would result in the removal of a large number of trees, which would be environmentally undesirable. This positioning would also avoid entering a garden on the northern bank associated with a house in North Cray Road. The land is in a single ownership, making such a scheme quite practicable •

• Once past Upper College Farm, the path could run ai--ongside the river into Bexley Village on the north bank to the car park at the rear of the "Old Mill" Restaurant. A difficulty may exist in routeing pedestrians through the grounds of the "Old Mill". There is an additional problem regarding this section of the River Cray (i.e. east of Upper College Farrct access from A223) in that the river bank is in a number of private ownerships, making an overall scheme more difficult to achieve than if in one ownership. However, it is in this- Mill Meadows area where the Southern By-Pass was proposed.. Al though dropped as a road scheme for the time being, consideration must be given to providing a suitable accessway if the road goes ahead in the future. This could enable the River Cray walk to be extended in the area.

15.5 The area of Upper College Farm in the vicinity of the • river and drainage ditches is quite densely wooded and is a haven for wildlife, including a heronry. The creation of a walk with an associated nature • trail would promote public access to this stretch of the River Cray, link up with Foots Cray Meadows and the Foots Cray activity centre, have an ed\,Jcational value and also provide an interesting leisure resource for all age groups.. Those areas where sensitive wildlife habitats exist should be safeguarded by preventing access al together in

21 STCLOOPS

• • certain places and careful s.1.g npos ting with associated infor1nation.

16. Other Open Recreation

16.l Infor11tal recreation, such as walking and jogging, • • should be a major consideration on this site and community benefits should be stressed in any proposed development. The River Cray Walk and associated nature trail is one scheme which the Council sees as highly desirable, and which could be incorporated with other site proposals. Access for such inforittdl activities would be from various points along the North Cray Road which currently serve the Foots Cray Meadows area and the main site access as described in para 8.2.

16.2 The Council would be pleased to consider any other suggestions on "open" recreational uses which have not been covered in this Brief.

FARM.l/12(Disc 17)SDL

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APPENDIX 1

SITE PLANNING HISTORY

- Gravel working applications and related inforrnation. ( see r'1ap 7) . ' Upper Colleg~ Farm

• This area was initially owned by Oxford University and was in active agricultural use until 1954 when it was sold to the Neuchatel Asphal te Co. Ltd. A planning application (Ref. WK/2/50/407) for gravel extraction over the whole site was refused in 1953, but granted on appeal in 1954 with two areas excluded. These were later granted permission for gravel extraction on appeal - one in 1958 (Ref. WK/2/57/326) and the other in 1966 (Ref. WK/2/65/106).

The site was continuously operated by various companies for the extraction of sand and gravel after l:3 54, and was acquired by the Tarrctac Group in 1969 from the Cray River Sand and Gravel Co. Ltd. Tar1r1ac • s excavations ceased in 1979.

However, restoration of the land as detailed in planning consents was not completed, and on 1st November 19 82 the • Greater London Council issued an Enforcement Notice in respect ,_of a large part of Upper College Farm ( see Map 3) requiring Tar1ctac to comply with the restoration conditions.

Since 1983 the Greater London Council have been pursuing the terrus of the Enforcement Notice with a new owner and site contractor with a view to achieving a satisfactory standard of restoration.

Mill Meadows Area

Consent was granted to the Cray River Sand and Gravel Co. in 1967 {Ref. 66/748) for gravel extraction on Mill Meadows. This was subject to certain conditions for reinstatement afterwards and to prevent pollution of the River Cray. In 1968 the site was extended in the north-east (Ref. 68/131) and in the north-west (Ref. 68/592). All the consents were to expire in January 1971 but were later extended to January 1974 .

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1 WK/2/50/ 40 7 5 68/131

2 WK/2/57/ 326 6 68/592 Scale approx . Sc ms. to 406 m . l Dale Ap,1I 1984 3 WK/2/651106

4 66/ 748

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- other applications

Reference Proposal Dec1.s1.on• •

Uppe_r College Farm • • 70/275 Use of 6 acres of land Refused •• (outline) in the north-east corner of tl1e site for a touring Appeal caravan and camping site. dismissed 9/9/71

82/11 Redevelopment of 72 acres Refused (outline) to provide residential 15/4/82 accom.modation, indoor and outdoor leisure facilities including rugby and cricket fields and a horticultural area.

83/1644 Two detached houses adjacent Refused to No. 4 Farin Cottages. 12/1/84

83/1700 Temporary mobile home. Refused 12/1/84 • An Article 4 Direction was made in March 1984 to remove any deemed rrights of development under Class IV. 2 on land at Upper College Farm .

Mill Meadows area

WK/2/60/419 Change of use of land from Refused agricultural to residential. 10/10/60

WK/2/63/7 Change of use of land from Refused agricultural to residential. 9/1/63 Appeal Dismissed 19/7/63

A Tree Preservation Order was made in 1977 (Ref. 76/1722) on a group of three Horse Chestnut trees on the west bank of the River Cray to the rear of the Old Mill and Woodland Tree

• • Pre servation Orders were made in 1950 on a belt of Silver Birch fro,n Bexley Cricket Ground to the River Cray and on the mixed woodland {mainly Elm, Poplar and Willow) on the • • north-west bank of the River Cray frorn the Cricket Club to Water Lane. STCLOOPS

APPENDIX 2

PROVISIONS OF DEVELOPMENT PLANS

The Development Plan for this part of Bexley currently comprises the Greater London Development Plan (G.L.D.P.) and •• the Initial Development Plan for Greater London, which allocates Upper College Farm as an area intended for the surface working of sand and gravel and land in the Mill •• Meadows area as believed to contain gravel deposits, whilst being zoned as Green Belt.

The latter will be superseded by the Bexley Borough Plan, a Borough-wide district plan which was the subject of a public local inquiry during the summer of 1983, reported on by the Inspector in November 1983 and should be adopted during 1984.

The area is sited within the Metropolitan Green Belt, with its well-established safeguarding planning policies . Land within the Green Belt should generally be kept free from building development and changes of use for purposes not, nor1c1ally acceptable in a Green Belt should be avoided. The following are the only general uses which, together with appropriate ancillary buildings, would be acceptable:-

• ( i) Agriculture, l1orticul ture and forestry; ·- (ii) predominantly open- air, recreational facilities for which adequate provision cannot be made within the urban area;

(iii) educational and institutional uses provided they will either preserve or improve the open nature of the areas; and

(iv) limited developments within hamlets or villages in the Green Belt provided they are strictly infilling in character with the existing development and surrounding landscape. (G . L.D.P. para 9.16)

In addition the area is included in the G.L. D. P . as within the Cray Valley Area of Special Character, with main policy aims being: - •

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- Safeguarding the individual quality and character. Protection of skylines and views. Investigatio n of the possibility of development as a regiona l park. (G.L.D.P. para 6.3 and Table 5)

~ • The Borough Plan developed earlier policies and recommended that recreational uses would be preferred on the land west of North Cray Road, al though not pr eel uding agriculture. ' • Objections were received to this approach and following the Public Local Inquiry in 1983 the Inquiry Inspector felt that the area west of North Cray Road and north of Water Lane had the character of a natural rural area, pastoral in parts and was therefore rather more of a "rural" Green Belt than "urban" Green Belt and so considered that recreation should only be encouraged where appropriate all the while retaining the rural character. The Borough Plan contains a number of other policies affecting future development in this area, and these are described under the appropriate headings of this Brief •

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APPENDIX 3

LOCAL FACILITIES

British Rail Bexley Station is adjacent to the site and Albany Park Station is situated nearby. Both provide regular rail services into Charing Cross, Cannon Street, London Bridge and \va terloo and to Dartford and the Kent • coast . Buses The Nos. 269, 229, 725 and 726 bus routes operate along Hurst Road and the number 492 operates along the North Cray Road.

Links to A2/A20 The A223 North Cray Road which borders part of the s.t te joins up with the A20 at Ruxley Corner. The nearest link to the A2 is about½ mile away at the Black Prince Interchange just north of Bexley Village.

Recreation and Leisure facilities West of Bexley Pumping Station are Stable and Foots Cray Meadows - areas of attractive parkland public open space with Five Arches Bridge as a focal point. The area is used intensively for general recreation; walking, picknicking, sports, etc., the river provides for fishing and boating and there is a

• camping site and Youth Outdoor Activities Centre . • Private ·-sports facilities close by include Loring Hall s,POrts ground and Bexley Cricket Club ground (also used by Burnt Ash Hockey Club) .

Bexley Village provides a range of infox:1nal leisure facilities including six pubs, a number of restaurants, private social clubs and nearby the Crest Hotel.

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APPENDIX 5

STATUTORY UNDERTAKERS, ETC.

Railways British Rail (Southern) Southern House, Ol-686-3422 Wellesley Grove, ( Chief Civil Engineer) • Croydon, CR9 lDY . Water Thames Water Authority, Brookrnill Road, Deptford, London, SE8 4HX. 01-692-0333

Surface water Sout hern Water Authority, drainage Kent Division, (0634) 46655 Caps tone Road, (Planning Ch·atham, Engineer) Kent, MES 7QA.

Electricity L.E.B., South Eastern Division, 01-304-7144 2 55, Broadway, (Engineering Bexleyheath, Manager) .. Kent, DA6 BET . It ,_ C.E.G.B. I South Eastern Region, • Purley District, Wealden House, Lewes Road, (0342)313066 East Grinstead, (District West Sussex, RH19 3TB. Manager)

Highways and London Borough of Bexley, Drainage Directorate of Engineering• • and Works, Sidcup Place, Sidcup, Kent. Ol-303-7777

Gas South Eastern Gas, P.O. Box 724, 709, Old Kent Road, London, SE15 l.J J . 01-639-2000 • Telephone British Telecom, ,, . London South East, Telephone House, 24, Westmoreland Place, Bromley, BRl lBA. 01-209-2116