South Sunderland Growth Area Landscape Character Assessment Prepared by LUC for Sunderland City Council January 2015 Project Title: City of Sunderland Landscape Character Assessment Client: Sunderland City Council Version Date Version Details Prepared by Checked by Approved by Principal 1 23 June Outline draft LUC PDM SCO 2014 2 5 August Final draft LUC PDM SCO 2014 3 31 October Revised final draft LUC PDM SCO 2014 4 16 January Final LUC PDM SCO 2015 H:\1 Projects\60\6074 Sunderland LCA\B Project Working\REPORT\SSGA Report\Sunderland SSGA LCA v4 20140116.docx South Sunderland Growth Area Landscape Character Assessment Prepared by LUC for Sunderland City Council January 2015 Planning & EIA LUC EDINBURGH Offices also in: Land Use Consultants Ltd Registered in England Design 28 Stafford Street London Registered number: 2549296 Landscape Planning Edinburgh Bristol Registered Office: Landscape Management EH3 7BD Glasgow 43 Chalton Street Ecology Tel: 0131 202 1616 London NW1 1JD LUC uses 100% recycled paper Mapping & Visualisation [email protected] FS 566056 EMS 566057 Contents 1 Introduction 1 Background 1 Methodology 3 Glossary 3 2 Evolution of the Landscape 4 Introduction 4 Physical influences 4 Human influences 7 The modern landscape 9 3 Landscape context 16 Regional context 16 Local context 16 General principles for development 17 4 Landscape of the SSGA 19 Introduction 19 Chapelgarth 20 Land north of Burdon Lane 25 Cherry Knowle 30 South Ryhope 35 5 References 40 Figures Figure 1 Study area 2 Figure 2 Topography 6 Figure 3 Aerial photo 10 Figure 4 Biodiversity 12 Figure 5 Cultural heritage 14 Figure 6 Open space 15 Figure 7 Landscape character 18 Figure 8 Detailed map of the Chapelgarth sub-area 20 Figure 9 Aerial photo of the Chapelgarth sub-area, showing photo locations 21 Figure 10 Detailed map of the Land north of Burdon Lane sub-area 25 Figure 11 Aerial photo of the Land north of Burdon Lane sub-area, showing photo locations 26 Figure 12 Detailed map of the Cherry Knowle sub-area 30 Figure 13 Aerial photo of the Cherry Knowle sub-area, showing photo locations 31 Figure 14 Detailed map of the South Ryhope sub-area 35 Figure 15 Aerial photo of the South Ryhope sub-area, showing photo locations 36 1 Introduction Background 1.1 This report presents a description and assessment of the landscape of the South Sunderland Growth Area (SSGA). It has been prepared to provide part of the evidence base for a supplementary planning document (SPD), which will be published by Sunderland City Council to guide development within the SSGA. 1.2 The SSGA has been identified as an area of significant housing development in the Local Development Framework Core Strategy. It is anticipated that the SSGA will meet a significant part of the city’s housing needs. 1.3 This report forms one output of a wider study which aims to describe and assess the landscape of the City of Sunderland administrative area. The city-wide landscape character assessment is presented in a separate report, but the two aspects of the study were undertaken simultaneously and are designed to be compatible. Essentially the SSGA report presents a more detailed look at this specific area, inset within the city-wide study. Landscape character assessment 1.4 Landscape character comprises the distinct set of elements that makes a landscape recognisable, and gives it a unique ‘sense of place’. Landscape character assessment is the process of mapping, classifying and describing the patterns and variations which contribute to the character of a landscape. 1.5 The European Landscape Convention (ELC) came into effect in the UK in March 2007 and is adopted and promoted by the Council of Europe. The ELC definition of landscape is all embracing: “Landscape means an area, as perceived by people, whose character is the result of the action and interaction of natural and/or human factors.” 1.6 Following the introduction of the ELC, a broader approach to ‘landscape’ has been pursued at a national level, grounded in the principle that all landscapes matter. The ELC applies to “all landscapes everywhere and in any condition – land, inland water, inter-tidal, marine, natural, rural, urban and peri-urban, outstanding, ordinary and degraded.”1 Study Area 1.7 The study area for the purposes of this report is the SSGA boundary as defined by Sunderland City Council, though note has been taken of important links with the surrounding landscape, and of key views beyond the SSGA boundary. This study has also been informed by the city-wide landscape character assessment, which looks at all aspects of the Sunderland area, including townscape, and its wider context. 1.8 The Council’s previous planning work has subdivided the SSGA into four sub-areas. From west to east these are named Chapelgarth, Cherry Knowle, land to the north of Burdon Lane, and South Ryhope. The SSGA boundary and the four sub-areas are shown on Figure 1. Structure of the report 1.9 The background to the landscape of the SSGA, from the earliest times to the present, is set out in Section 2. Section 3 describes the relationship between the SSGA and the surrounding landscape, and describes some general principles for development. More detailed analysis and recommendations are set out for each sub-area in Section 4. 1 Land Use Consultants (2009) Guidelines for Implementing the European Landscape Convention. Natural England. South Sunderland Growth Area Landscape Character 1 January 2015 Assessment Figure 1 Study area South Sunderland Growth Area Landscape Character 2 January 2015 Assessment Methodology 1.10 The approach to the study has been based on good practice guidance on the topic published in 2002 by the Countryside Agency and Scottish Natural Heritage.2 It has also been informed by more recent guidance on specific aspects of landscape assessment. A detailed method statement is provided as an appendix to the City of Sunderland Landscape Character Assessment report. For the purposes of the SSGA study, this was supplemented by more detailed field survey and recording of individual features, to inform the finer grain of the assessment. Glossary 1.11 The following glossary provides definitions of the key terms used in the study. Definitions for the technical terms associated with landscape character assessment are drawn from the glossary provided in the 3rd edition of the Guidelines for Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment.3 Elements or features: The individual parts which make up a landscape, for example trees, buildings, hedges, landmarks, etc. Key characteristics: The combinations of elements which are particularly important to the current character of a landscape, and help to give an area its distinctive sense of place. Landscape character: A distinct, recognisable and consistent pattern of elements in the landscape that makes one landscape different from another, rather than better or worse. Landscape character area: These are single unique areas which are discrete geographical examples of a particular landscape character type. Landscape character assessment: The process of identifying and describing variation in the character of a landscape, and using this information to assist in managing change in the landscape. It seeks to identify and explain the unique combinations of elements and features which make each landscape distinctive. Landscape character type: These are distinct types of landscape that are relatively homogenous in character. They share broadly similar combinations of geology, topography, drainage patterns, vegetation and historical land use and settlement patterns, and perceptual and aesthetic attributes. Landscape value: The relative value that is attached to different landscapes by society. A landscape may be valued by different people for different reasons. Seascape: Coastal landscapes which have views of the sea, and which have cultural, historical or perceptual associations with the marine environment. Townscape: The character and composition of the built environment including buildings and the different types of urban open space, and the relationships between them. Tranquillity: A state of calm and quietude associated with peace and with being away from modern development, considered to be a significant asset of some landscapes. 2 Countryside Agency and Scottish Natural Heritage (2002) Landscape Character Assessment: Guidance for England and Scotland. 3 Landscape Institute and Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (2013) Guidelines for Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment. 3rd Edition. Routledge. South Sunderland Growth Area Landscape Character 3 January 2015 Assessment 2 Evolution of the Landscape Introduction 2.1 The City of Sunderland is a metropolitan borough, located at the mouth of the River Wear in the Tyne and Wear region. Sunderland covers around 85.5 km2, and has a population of around 275,000 (2011 figures) which has declined in recent years. The majority of the population live in Sunderland and its suburbs, with the new town of Washington being the next-largest settlement. 2.2 The area has historically been part of County Durham, but the present boundaries date from local government reorganisation in 1974. It formed part of the Tyne and Wear County Council area until becoming a unitary authority in 1986: Sunderland was granted city status in 1992. Sunderland is bordered by South Tyneside to the north, Gateshead to the north-west, and County Durham to the south-west and south. The east flank of the borough is open to the North Sea. 2.3 The SSGA lies at the southern edge of the built up area of Sunderland, close to the southern boundary of the borough. It is to the south of the settlements of Doxford Park and Ryhope, and to the north of the hamlet of Burdon. Covering 277ha, the area is relatively long and narrow, just under 5km from west to east, but rarely more than 600-700m across. 2.4 The following sections describe how the landscape of the study area has developed from the earliest times to its present condition.