Suffolk Coastal Landscape Character Assessment Final Report July 2018 Alison Farmer Associates 29 Montague Road Cambridge CB4 1BU Tel: 01223 461444 [email protected] in association with Lucy Bachelor-Wylam and Countryscape 1 Contents 1.0 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................... 3 1.1 APPOINTMENT ............................................................................................................................ 3 1.2 THE BRIEF AND SCOPE OF WORK ............................................................................................. 3 1.3 APPROACH TO STUDY ................................................................................................................ 3 1.4 EXISTING LANDSCAPE CLASSIFICATIONS .................................................................................. 5 2.0 ABOUT THE LANDSCAPE .......................................................................................... 7 2.1 GEOLOGY, SOILS AND TOPOGRAPHY ........................................................................................ 7 2.2 THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE AND HISTORIC EVOLUTION .......................................................... 8 2.3 HABITATS AND CURRENT LAND USES ....................................................................................... 9 2.4 VALUED LANDSCAPES .............................................................................................................. 10 3.0 LANDSCAPE CHARACTER AREAS ......................................................................... 13 B2 BLYTH VALLEY ................................................................................................. 15 B3 YOX VALLEY ...................................................................................................... 19 B4 FROMUS VALLEY .............................................................................................. 23 B5 ALDE VALLEY..................................................................................................... 26 B6 ORE VALLEY ...................................................................................................... 30 B7 DEBEN VALLEY ................................................................................................. 34 B8 FYNN VALLEY .................................................................................................... 38 B9 LARK VALLEY..................................................................................................... 41 B10 MILL RIVER VALLEY ......................................................................................... 44 B11 BUTLEY VALLEY ............................................................................................... 48 D2 WESTWOOD AND DINGLE MARSHES ............................................................ 51 D3 MINSMERE AND SIZEWELL COAST ................................................................ 54 D4 THORPENESS TO ALDEBURGH ...................................................................... 57 D5 ORFORDNESS AND MARSHES ....................................................................... 60 E3 FELIXSTOWE ..................................................................................................... 64 I5 LINSTEAD AND FRAMLINGHAM PLATEAU ..................................................... 67 J3 BLYTH ESTUARY ............................................................................................... 71 J4 ALDE ESTUARY ................................................................................................. 74 Alison Farmer Associates Suffolk Coastal Landscape Character Assessment Final Report 2 J5 DEBEN ESTUARY .............................................................................................. 77 J6 ORWELL ESTUARY ........................................................................................... 82 K2 DUNWICH AND WESTLETON SANDLANDS .................................................... 86 K3 ALDRINGHAM AND FRISTON SANDLANDS ................................................... 90 K4 TUNSTALL AND RENDLESHAM SANDLANDS ............................................... 94 K5 KESGRAVE SANDLANDS ................................................................................. 98 L1 HEVENINGHAM AND KNODISHALL ESTATE CLAYLANDS ......................... 102 L2 GLEMHAM ESTATE CLAYLANDS .................................................................. 106 L3 EASTON AND GLEVERING ESTATE CLAYLANDS ....................................... 110 L4 OTLEY HALL AND DEBACH ESTATE CLAYLANDS ...................................... 114 M1 RENDLESHAM AND TUNSTALL ESTATE FARMLANDS .............................. 118 M2 TRIMLEY AND FOXHALL ESTATE FARMLAND ............................................ 122 N1 BOULGE PARK AND BREDFIELD ROLLING FARMLAND ............................ 126 N2 CULPHO AND WESTERFIELD ROLLING FARMLAND ................................. 130 O1 BENHALL ESTATE SANDLANDS .................................................................. 133 3.0 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 136 Landscape Character Drawings Drawing Number 1: North Drawing Number 2: South Alison Farmer Associates Suffolk Coastal Landscape Character Assessment Final Report 3 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Appointment Alison Farmer Associates, in association with Lucy Bachelor-Wylam and Countryscape, was appointed by Suffolk Coastal in December 2017 to undertake a landscape character assessment of the District. The landscape assessment was carried out as a standalone piece of work, but also used to inform a parallel settlement fringe sensitivity study for settlements in Suffolk Coastal District as well as around the Ipswich fringe. The planning authorities in the area are working closely together in terms of developing their local plans. In February 2018 the decision to merge Suffolk Coastal and Waveney Districts to create a single authority called East Suffolk was announced by Government. Waveney District currently has a Landscape Character Assessment which defines local character types and areas1. 1.2 The Brief and Scope of Work The aim of the project is to provide a detailed understanding of the landscape. The Study Area comprises the whole of Suffolk Coastal District. Care has been taken to ensure that the classification of character areas is compatible with that established in Waveney District to the north and also the Touching the Tide and Shotley Peninsula and Hinterland character assessments along the coast and to the south respectively. The overall scope of work included four broad stages – firstly a familiarisation stage, gathering background data from the client team; secondly a desk study stage where digital data and background documents were reviewed and landscape character areas defined in draft; thirdly site assessment where the draft character areas were verified in the field and information on perceptual aspects of the landscape recorded; fourthly a write up phase where the written descriptions for landscape areas were developed. 1.3 Approach to Study This report sets how the Suffolk Coastal landscape character assessment has been prepared, explains what past actions and events have helped shaped the landscape we see today and goes on to provide detailed descriptions of unique Landscape Character Areas. These descriptions highlight local distinctiveness and articulate the special qualities of the area, as well as providing guidance on how to manage change. The assessment is based on national guidance namely Landscape Character Assessment – Guidance for England and Scotland, Countryside Agency/Scottish Natural Heritage, 2002 and An Approach to Landscape Character Assessment, Natural England (2014). 1 Waveney District Landscape Character Assessment, Land Use Consultants, April 2008 Alison Farmer Associates Suffolk Coastal Landscape Character Assessment Final Report 4 Landscape Character Assessment is a useful tool, recognised by Government and promoted by Natural England, to identify the special character that gives a landscape its sense of place. Through this understanding the assessment helps inform planning and management of future change. Landscape Character Assessment recognises that all landscapes matter, not just those that are designated. Landscape character is the distinct, recognisable and consistent pattern of elements that makes one landscape different from another. Variations in geology, soils, landform, land use, vegetation, field boundaries, settlement patterns and building styles all help give rise to different landscapes. These differences are the product of both natural and human influences. Landscape character assessment involves mapping, classifying and describing these variations in landscape character. It also involves making judgements about the character and condition of the landscape, and analysing forces for change, to help us make informed decisions about how we should manage change in the future. In classifying the landscape, two categories may be identified: Landscape character types - these are landscapes with broadly similar combinations of geology, landform, vegetation, land use, field and settlement patterns. They repeat across a landscape so that landscapes belonging to a particular type, such as Valley Meadowlands, may be found in different places. Landscape character areas - these are unique areas that occur in only one place and are therefore geographically specific.