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A Ddendumtothe HGDS Andthe HGSA

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A Ddendumtothe HGDS Andthe HGSA Addendum to the Housing Growth Development Study (CDX1.1) and the Housing Growth Sustainability Appraisal (CDR3.2/CDB3.1) November 2014 Addendum to the Housing Growth Development Study (CDX1.1) and the Housing Growth Sustainability Appraisal (CDR3.2 & CDB3.1) A1.1 Housing Growth Development Study A1.2 The Housing Growth Development Study (HGDS) excluded areas 3A, 7 and 18 (all within Redditch Borough) from the broad site appraisal and the broad site appraisal for Area 3 excluded the Webheath ADR. The approach adopted by the two Councils considered that Areas 3A and 7 should be discounted immediately as they fell within the Borough boundary and were not considered suitable for development and Areas 3 and 18 were automatically counted towards development needs due to their ADR status. However, the Inspector’s Post-Hearing Note of 3 October 2014 raised concerns about this approach and directed the Redditch Borough Council to address these Areas in more detail and in the context of the HGDS. A1.3 As a result of this and at the request of the Inspector, this addendum to the HGDS and accompanying SA seek to include the above areas for completeness and clarity. A1.4 This document should be read in conjunction with the HGDS and accompanying SA (CDX1.1 and CDR3.2). This document has been set out, firstly to update the HGDS, followed by the associated SA analysis. Each section has been signposted to clarify which section of the two original documents the supporting text relates to. A1.5 Broad Area Appraisal A1.6 Introduction A1.7 The Housing Growth Development Study (HGDS) excluded areas 3A, 7 and 18 from the broad site appraisal and the broad site appraisal for Area 3 excluded the Webheath ADR. As a result of this Addendum, all Areas (1 to 20) have been appraised against the eight area assessment principles. This section should be read in conjunction with paragraphs 5.16 to 5.239 of the HGDS. A1.8 Area 3 (Revised) A1.9 This section supersedes paragraphs 5.46 to 5.58 of the HGDS. A1.10 Area 3 is located to the west of Redditch’s urban area partially within the Parish of Feckenham. The area is bound by Pumphouse Lane to the north, Swans Brook to the west, Sillins Lane to the south and Green Lane and Church Road to the east. The area abuts Morton Stanley Park on its eastern boundary. Two ordinary watercourses flow through the site, the first in the vicinity of Norgrove Court to the northern parts of Church Road and the second (Alders Brook) in the vicinity of the Monarch’s Way footpath towards the south of the area. A1.11 Area 3 includes the Webheath ADR. The ADR is designated within Redditch Local Plan No.3 to provide a reserve of land for housing beyond 2011. This Addendum to the Housing Growth Development Study (CDX1.1) and the Housing Growth Sustainability Appraisal (CDR3.2/ CDB3.1) - November 2014 1 assessment includes the ADR land and the gross Area 3 has been used for the purpose of this broad area appraisal. Figure 1: Map of Area 3 A1.12 Green Infrastructure The area contains no Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) or Local Wildlife Sites (LWSs), highlighting that there are no significant environmental constraints. However, the area is in close proximity to LWSs to the east (Walkwood Coppice and Downsell Wood) and Swans Brook to the west. Mill Coppice, which is adjacent to Swans Brook, was a Special Wildlife Site (now referred to as LWS) until 2009 when its quality was reassessed and it was judged to be inappropriate to retain the designation. Potential harm to green infrastructure linkages between Morton Stanley Park and the wider countryside. A1.13 Accessibility The area is 1.58km from Webheath First School which has academy status, and 3.42km from The Bridge Surgery at Headless Cross. There are very limited retail facilities available in Webheath approximately 1.4km from the area, with Headless Cross District Centre some 3.26km from the area. A dental surgery is located on Downsell Avenue 1.9km from the area. Access to public transport is considered to be poor. The nearest bus stop is 1.6km from the area which is beyond a reasonable walking distance (55/56 service to Redditch, every 30 minutes, Monday to Saturday and hourly on Sunday). In addition the area is approximately 4.3km from Redditch Train Station. Addendum to the Housing Growth Development Study (CDX1.1) and the Housing Growth Sustainability Appraisal (CDR3.2/ CDB3.1) - November 2014 2 Bus services are expected to improve in the Webheath area due to the improvements to services which were secured through recent planning consent. The area is approximately 4.5km distance from Redditch Town Centre and the Kingfisher Centre where a wide variety of retail, business, health and leisure opportunities are available. The area is 4.86km from the nearest Industrial Estate at Dunlop Road. The area benefits from good access to Morton Stanley Park which is adjacent to the area connected through the Monarch’s Way footpath. The Monarch’s Way connects at the south east of the site at Green Lane and follows Alders Brook on a west/east axis, before heading north/south near to the western boundary of area 3. A1.14 Vitality and Viability The proximity to Webheath means that potentially the vitality and viability of the limited range of local facilities (1.4km) could be enhanced if development occurred in this location. Headless Cross District Centre is 3.26km from the area so any improvement to the vitality and viability of the District Centre may be reliant on the car. Development on the western side of Redditch will lead to traffic flows towards Bromsgrove which may help to improve the vitality and viability of both Town Centres. A1.15 Flood Risk Swans Brook along the western boundary of the area and lies within Flood Zone 3a. Alders Brook is an ordinary water course that also runs through the area, however, this course has not been modelled in terms of flooding. The unnamed watercourse flowing through the Webheath ADR at the north of the site is a tributary of Swans Brook. This watercourse has been modelled in the Bromsgrove and Redditch Strategic Flood Risk Assessment Level 2, and very small areas within Flood Zone 3 are known to exist and it has minimal channel flow capacity. A1.16 Infrastructure Capacity Many of the roads are single track country lanes and are unlikely to be able to cope with significant increases in traffic flows. It is therefore likely that significant investment in road infrastructure would be required to link to the existing road network to the more remote parts of this area. However, the Webheath ADR could connect easily to the existing highway network. The provision of drainage facilities could be problematic as the area is west of the ridgeline, however upgrades to the gravity feed to Priest Bridge STW can be implemented by STWL. A1.17 Green Belt The topography of the area rises from 100m in the vicinity of the Monarch’s Way and the watercourse up to 120m at the crest of the hill on Crumpfields Lane. The topography then rises along the ridge of Crumpfields Lane with those properties on the southern side of the Lane overlooking the valley of Area 3. Potential Addendum to the Housing Growth Development Study (CDX1.1) and the Housing Growth Sustainability Appraisal (CDR3.2/ CDB3.1) - November 2014 3 development extending below the ridge of Crumpfields Lane would be prominent from a wider area and would represent sprawl into the countryside. Approximately one quarter of Area 3 is allocated as Webheath ADR to provide a reserve of land for housing beyond 2011 A1.18 Built Environment There are five listed buildings within the area including Norgrove Court (grade I) highlighting that development may have an impact on the historic built environment. In particular the setting of Norgrove Court could be affected if development was to occur in the north-western parts of the area. The location of Morton Stanley Park to the east of Area 3 (but within the urban area of Redditch) would mean that integration of the potential development south of Crumpfields Lane back into Redditch’s urban area would be difficult. The ADR section of Area 3 offers good connectivity to the existing built form and would relate well to the urban area. A1.19 Highways Without significant improvements to the public transport network, there is likely to be a heavy reliance on car based travel to access the Town Centre and employment opportunities. Development on the western side of Redditch will lead to traffic flows towards Bromsgrove and would cause pressures on the A38 and Bromsgrove Town Centre. A1.20 Summary A1.21 Access to good quality public transport is presently a significant barrier to the wider Area 3; however the planned improvements to the existing bus network secured through planning consent on the northern section of the Webheath ADR would increase access to bus services in this immediate vicinity. With the nearest bus stop 1.6km from the wider area there is likely to be a reliance on car based travel to access the Town Centre and employment opportunities. In addition there are very few local services and facilities within walking distance of the wider area; however these facilities are located within a reasonable distance of the ADR. A1.22 There is also likely to be significant Green Belt harm due to the level of sprawl into the wider countryside and the visual prominence of large parts of the site.
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