Submission Plan (May 2018)
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Submission Plan (May 2018) All maps within this neighbourhood plan © Crown copyright. All rights Reserved – 100023279 Contents 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 About Neighbourhood Plans............................................................................................................ 1 About the Fordham Neighbourhood Plan ........................................................................................ 1 2. Fordham’s context ..................................................................................................................... 4 History ............................................................................................................................................. 4 Locality & the Surrounding Area ...................................................................................................... 5 Population ....................................................................................................................................... 6 Housing ........................................................................................................................................... 7 Character ........................................................................................................................................ 8 Landscape .................................................................................................................................... 11 Wildlife .......................................................................................................................................... 12 Growth .......................................................................................................................................... 12 Employment .................................................................................................................................. 13 Getting around .............................................................................................................................. 14 Infrastructure & Services ............................................................................................................... 14 3. Vision & Objectives ................................................................................................................. 16 Vision ............................................................................................................................................ 16 Objectives ..................................................................................................................................... 16 4. Policies ..................................................................................................................................... 17 Housing growth ............................................................................................................................. 17 Character & Design ....................................................................................................................... 21 Local Green Spaces ...................................................................................................................... 22 Maintaining Separation .................................................................................................................. 24 The Ironbridge Path & New Path Area .......................................................................................... 26 Locally Important Views ................................................................................................................ 27 Heritage Assets & Locally Important Buildings .............................................................................. 29 Wildlife & Habitats ......................................................................................................................... 31 Services & Facilities ...................................................................................................................... 33 Provision of Medical & Educational Facilities ................................................................................. 34 Pedestrian Access & Public Rights of Way .................................................................................... 35 Car Parking ................................................................................................................................... 36 Cycle parking & storage ................................................................................................................ 38 5. Community Projects ................................................................................................................ 40 Glossary .......................................................................................................................................... 41 Policy List: Policy 1: Housing Growth Policy 2: Character & Design Policy 3: Local Green Spaces Policy 4: Maintaining Separation Policy 5: Ironbridge Path & New Path Area Policy 6: Locally Important Views Policy 7: Locally Important Buildings & Structures Policy 8: Wildlife & Habitats Policy 9: Services & Facilities Policy 10: Provision of Medical & Educational Facilities Policy 11: Pedestrian Access & Public Rights of Way Policy 12: Car Parking Policy 13: Cycle Parking & Storage Map List: Map 1: Fordham Neighbourhood Area Map 2: Development Envelopes Map 3: Site Allocations Map 4: Local Green Spaces Map 5: The Ironbridge Path & New Path Area Map 6: Locally Important Views Map 7: Heritage Assets in the Village Map 8: Public Rights of Way Please note: all maps are provided in larger size in the accompanying Fordham Neighbourhood Plan Maps document. 1. Introduction 1.1. This is the Fordham Neighbourhood Plan 2016-2036. The plan covers the Fordham Neighbourhood Area which was formally designated by East Cambridgeshire in December 2017 and the boundary of which matches the boundary of Fordham Parish. 1.2. This is the version of the plan submitted to East Cambridgeshire Local Plan. About Neighbourhood Plans 1.3. Neighbourhood Plans were introduced in the Localism Act (2011) with the intention of giving communities direct power to develop a shared vision for their neighbourhood and shape the development of their local area. Neighbourhood planning provides a powerful set of tools for local people to ensure that they get the right types of development for their community where the ambition of the neighbourhood is aligned with the strategic needs and priorities of the wider local area. 1.4. When adopted, the Neighbourhood Plan will have the same status as the East Cambridgeshire Local Plan, becoming part of the ‘development plan’. Decisions on planning applications must be determined in accordance with the development plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise. As such this neighbourhood plan will provide an important framework for how Fordham should grow in the coming years. 1.5. However, it should be noted that national policy stipulates that neighbourhood plans should not promote less development than is set out in the Local Plan or undermine its strategic priorities. As such, the East Cambridgeshire Local Plan will set a level of growth that will occur within Fordham and the neighbourhood plan cannot prevent that. 1.6. What the neighbourhood plan can do is to create a suite of policies that complements existing local, national and strategic planning policy, to provide additional detail and subtlety that reflect the special characteristics of Fordham that cannot reasonably be addressed by higher-level policy. It can also help to secure the infrastructure that is needed to support growth and protect areas, landmarks and services that are most important to the community. About the Fordham Neighbourhood Plan 1.7. The Fordham Neighbourhood Plan is being produced by Fordham Parish Council on behalf of the community of Fordham. The boundary of the Fordham Neighbourhood Area, which was formally designated on 21 December 2017, can be seen on Map 1 below: 1 Map 1: Fordham Neighbourhood Area 1.8. It is clear, given the number of planning applications and permissions in the village and the proposed allocations in the emerging East Cambridgeshire Local Plan, that a significant amount of growth is likely to occur in Fordham, and this plan is intended to ensure that: the new development fits the village context and delivers an appropriate mix and style of houses; development is supported by the necessary facilities and services; the important attributes of Fordham that the community holds dear are not lost; Fordham’s individuality and distinctiveness is retained and strengthened; and development beyond that proposed in the emerging Local Plan is restricted to small sites within the village envelope. 1.9. The Fordham Neighbourhood Plan is intended to set out a local blueprint for how Fordham should develop sustainably in the best interest of the village, in the context of the wider Local Plan. 1.10. Neighbourhood Plans are restricted to dealing with matters relating to land use and development planning, and therefore many other important non-planning matters cannot be included in the plan. Where the community have raised concerns about non-planning matters, whilst these are not in the plan, they will be recorded by the Parish Council and other means to tackle the issue will be considered where possible. 1.11. At the time of writing the Fordham Neighbourhood