Epping Forest District Local Plan Report on Site Selection Appendix C - Settlement Proformas ISSUE | September 2016 This report takes into account the particular instructions and requirements of our client. It is not intended for and should not be relied upon by any third party and no responsibility is undertaken to any third party. Job number Ove Arup & Partners Ltd 13 Fitzroy Street London W1T 4BQ United Kingdom www.arup.com Document Verification Job title Settlement hierarchy and town centres review Job number Document title Interim Progress Note File reference Document ref Revision Date Filename Interim Progress Note 18 07 16 Issue.docx Draft 1 1 8 Jul Description First draft 2016 Prepared by Checked by Approved by M J Thompson Name Richard Katz M J Thompson N White Fran Dance Signature Final 06 Filename Town Centre Proforma 060916.docx Draft September Description Final Draft 2016 Prepared by Checked by Approved by M J Thompson Name Richard Katz M J Thompson N White Fran Dance Signature Issue Filename Town Centre Proforma 200916.docx Description Issue Prepared by Checked by Approved by Name Signature Filename Description Prepared by Checked by Approved by Name Signature Issue Document Verification with Document | Issue | 18 July 2016 C:\USERS\KSTWOMEY\APPDATA\LOCAL\MICROSOFT\WINDOWS\TEMPORARY INTERNET FILES\CONTENT.OUTLOOK\E0PA9Z7E\APPENDIX C (SITE SELECTION) - SETTLEMENT PROFORMAS FINAL 160930.DOCX Epping Forest District Council Settlement hierarchy and town centres review Interim Progress Note | Issue | 18 July 2016 C:\USERS\KSTWOMEY\APPDATA\LOCAL\MICROSOFT\WINDOWS\TEMPORARY INTERNET FILES\CONTENT.OUTLOOK\E0PA9Z7E\APPENDIX C (SITE SELECTION) - SETTLEMENT PROFORMAS FINAL 160930.DOCX Appendix C Settlement Proformas Epping Forest District Council Epping Forest District Local Plan Report on Site Selection Contents C1 Introduction 1 C2 Town Proformas 2 C2.1 Chipping Ongar 2 C2.2 Epping 18 C2.3 Loughton 36 C2.4 Waltham Abbey 56 C3 Villages and Hamlets 72 C3.1 Buckhurst Hill 72 C3.2 Chigwell 87 C3.3 North Weald Bassett 100 C3.4 Roydon 113 C3.5 Theydon Bois 126 C3.6 Nazeing 137 C3.7 Thornwood 150 C3.8 Sewardstone 159 C4 Evidence Sources 169 C4.1 Evidence used for all topic areas: 169 C4.2 Housing: 169 C4.3 Economic Development: 169 C4.4 Town Centres: 170 C4.5 Transport: 170 C4.6 Environment: 171 C4.7 Landscape: 171 C4.8 Green Belt: 171 C4.9 Heritage & Townscape 171 C4.10 Community Facilities 172 | Issue | September 2016 Epping Forest District Council Epping Forest District Local Plan Report on Site Selection C1 Introduction In order to inform the site selection process, the aspirations and visions for each settlement and ultimately guide settlement specific policies in the Draft Plan an initial review was undertaken for the following 12 settlements within the District: Towns: Chipping Ongar, Epping, Loughton, Waltham Abbey. Villages and Hamlets: Buckhurst Hill, Chigwell, North Weald Bassett, Roydon, Theydon Bois, Nazeing, Thornwood, Sewardstone. This involved a site visit in July 2016, alongside a review of the existing evidence base documents to inform the completion of a proforma for each settlement. Details of the evidence base used to inform the settlement reviews, are listed in Section C4 of this Appendix. A proforma was completed for each settlement. Each proforma provides: the vision for the settlement, a settlement description, a summary of key issues, demographic information; a SWOT analysis which sets out the opportunities, constraints, weaknesses and strengths of the settlement; and topic specific information on housing, economic development, centre, transport, environment, landscape, Green Belt, heritage and townscape, community facilities. Outputs from the settlement proforma process have been used in the review process to: inform the site selection process; guide the formulation of settlement specific policies; secure wider ownership of how topic based information impacts on individual settlements; capture and review settlement specific data (where available); and capture stakeholder feedback to guide policy development. The settlement proformas provided a vital understanding of the baseline position in the main settlements of Epping Forest District, against which later stages of this review, and other emerging Local Plan evidence base documents could review likely impacts (both substantive and perceptual). The proformas for each of the twelves settlements are provided in Section C2 (Towns) and C3 (Villages and Hamlets) of this Appendix. | Issue | September 2016 Page C1 Epping Forest District Council Epping Forest District Local Plan Report on Site Selection C2 Town Proformas C2.1 Chipping Ongar 1. VISION AND OVERVIEW VISION Proposed Vision Chipping Ongar will continue to reflect its current local and independent character, providing services and amenities to a wide catchment of residents and visitors. Future development in the town will support Chipping Ongar being self-sufficient and will be accompanied by the provision of local services and infrastructure, including supporting non-car based modes of travel. Chipping Ongar will balance utilising its existing heritage and leisure assets (including the Epping Ongar Heritage Railway and connections to the Essex Way) with the protection and enhancement of the settlement’s historic environment. OVERVIEW OF SETTLEMENT Chipping Ongar (also known as Ongar) is a historic market town which has a population of approximately 6,000 (as at 2011), and is classed as a Town in the Settlement Hierarchy Technical Paper (2015). Public transport links are limited. While the Central Line used to extend from Epping to Ongar (via North Weald Bassett and Blake Hall), this section was closed in the mid-1990s and the remaining track is now used by the Epping Ongar Railway as a leisure/tourist line. The settlement is completely surrounded by Green Belt, and the existing Green Belt boundary divides it into the three primary developed areas (Chipping Ongar, Shelley and Mardon Ash). The settlement serves a large rural hinterland and provides an important function within a large geographic area. The High Street represents the main retail centre of the settlement. It contains a diverse range of shops from smaller, independent retailers to a larger supermarket in the form of Sainsbury’s. Employment space is provided on a small scale through the Essex Technology and Innovation Technology Centre, and on a larger scale at Fyfield Business Park (although this is subject to proposals for redevelopment). The Chipping Ongar Conservation Area covers the town centre area, including much of the High Street and main shopping area, and Ongar Castle which is a Scheduled Monument. Great Stony School Conservation Area is situated to the north of the historic core of Chipping Ongar. Five other scheduled monuments are found in the wider parishes of Shelley and Moreton to the north of Chipping Ongar, alongside a large number of nationally and locally listed buildings. The town suffers from occasional flooding from the River Roding and Cripsey Brook, especially affecting the eastern and western sides. KEY ISSUES The existing Green Belt boundary divides the Town into the three primary areas (Chipping Ongar, Shelley and Mardon Ash) resulting in breaks in the developed areas. The town sits between the River Roding and Cripsey Brook and the presence of these two rivers means that there are several areas within Flood Zones 2 and 3 within and around | Issue | September 2016 Page C2 Epping Forest District Council Epping Forest District Local Plan Report on Site Selection Chipping Ongar. There is an opportunity to promote tourism and leisure in the settlement. The main centre of Chipping Ongar is designated as a Conservation Area, and therefore any development in the town centre will need to be sensitive to its historic setting. There is also a Scheduled Monument within the settlement (Ongar Castle), and a further five in the wider parishes of Shelley & Morton. Limited public transport accessibility in the town, with the nearest London Underground station in Epping. The old tube line is currently run as a heritage railway. There is a poor bus service which is unreliable and makes the settlement feel isolated. Parking is also limited in the town centre. There can be major traffic congestion in the town due to HGVs using the High Street to travel across the county. The town is a through-route for traffic. There is capacity within the settlement’s two primary schools and the newly opened secondary academy to cater for some growth. POPULATION Ward name Population at 2011 Area of ward Population density Census (hectares) (people per hectare) Chipping Ongar, 4,046 622 6.5 Greensted and Marden Ash Shelley 2,205 280 7.9 Total 6,251 902 6.9 Number of LSOAs in None. LSOA 004D within Shelley ward to the north of the town ward in 10% most centre is within the 40% most deprived neighbourhoods in the deprived nationally country. Some areas of Chipping Ongar are within the top 10% least deprived areas in England, while there are also pockets of greater deprivation. Demographic Profile Approximately 24% of the population of Chipping Ongar are aged 18 or under, which is above the average for the District (22%), but in line with the national average. This compares to a population who are aged 65 and over of over 21%, again higher the average for the District (18%) and national average of 16%. With regard to employment, almost 82% of the residents aged 16- 74 are economically active. This is higher than both the District average (79%) and the average for England (77%). (Source: Census 2011, ONS). 2. SUITABILITY OF THE SETTLEMENT FOR GROWTH AND THE FUTURE OF THE TOWN CENTRE OPPORTUNITIES The historic character of the centre, including the Scheduled Monument of Ongar Castle | Issue | September 2016 Page C3 Epping Forest District Council Epping Forest District Local Plan Report on Site Selection and the High Street Conservation Area, provide opportunities to encourage tourism and leisure economy in Chipping Ongar.