DaventryDaventry StrategicStrategic DevelopmentDevelopment OptionsOptions StudyStudy -- AprilApril 20052005 Daventry Strategic Development Options Study - April 2005 Daventry Strategic Development Options Study - April 2005 Contents Chapter One Introduction 1 Chapter Two Structure 3 Part One Wide Area Assessment 7 Chapter Three Planning Context 8 Chapter Four Ecological Constraints 17 Chapter Five Heritage Constraints 21 Chapter Six Landscape Constraints 27 Chapter Seven Geotechnical and Environmental Constraints 31 Chapter Eight Transport Analysis 35 Chapter Nine Urban Design Analysis 53 Chapter Ten Broad Growth Scenarios 57 Chapter Eleven Environmental Appraisal 59 Part Two Strategic Development Options 73 Chapter Twelve Strategic Development Options 74 Chapter Thirteen Option Evaluation 90 Daventry Strategic Development Options Study - April 2005 List of Figures Figure One Study Area Figure Two Ecological Constraints Figure Three Heritage Constraints Figure Four Landscape Constraints Figure Five Geotechnical and Environmental Constraints Figure Six Constraints on Development Figure Seven Transport Analysis Figure Eight Conceptual Sustainable Urban Locations Figure Nine Broad Growth Scenario One Figure Ten Broad Growth Scenario Two Figure Eleven Broad Growth Scenario Three Figure Twelve Strategic Development Option One Figure Thirteen Strategic Development Option Two Figure Fourteen Strategic Development Option Three List of Appendices Appendix One Employment, Education and Health Issues (Ancer Spa) Appendix Two Proposed Canal Arm - Effect on Development Values (Ancer Spa) Appendix Three County Wildlife Sites Appendix Four Cultural Heritage Resources Appendix Five Strategic Development Option Evaluation Table Please note that Appendices One and Two are supplied in a separate document DaventryDaventry StrategicStrategic DevelopmentDevelopment OptionsOptions StudyStudy -- AprilApril 20052005 Chapter 1 Introduction Daventry Strategic Development Options Study - April 2005 Chapter One 1.5 The town enjoys good access to the M1 and M6 / A14. This Introduction has led to major growth in the warehousing and distribution sector. There are also excellent rail freight facilities offered Purpose of the Strategic Development Options Study by the Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal (DIRFT) ten kilometres north of the town. The nearest passenger rail services run from Long Buckby and Northampton, to the east 1.1 Atkins Consultants Ltd (Atkins) was commissioned in May of the M1. These stations are not particularly well linked to 2004 by Northamptonshire Partnership and Daventry District Daventry. Council to undertake a Strategic Development Options Study (SDOS) that would consider the options for creating a Milton Keynes South Midlands Sub Regional Strategy sustainable town of 40,000 population. 1.2 Northamptonshire Partnership works with the East Midlands 1.6 The Government has identified the Milton Keynes South Development Agency to deliver economic development Midlands area (MKSM), covering Northamptonshire, within Northamptonshire. The Partnership aims to help the Bedfordshire and northern Buckinghamshire, as one of four development of existing businesses, attract new jobs and areas in and around the South East into which growth will be industries, raise the skills of Northamptonshire people and directed over the next thirty years. promote thriving local communities. 1.7 This growth will take the form of housing, jobs and 1.3 This Study will form a background document to inform associated infrastructure so as to produce a sustainable form 1 the District Council’s preparation of the Local Development of settlement not reliant on out commuting. The draft of the Framework (LDF). The LDF will be subject to extensive MKSM Sub Regional Strategy (July 2003) named Daventry as consultation as set out in the Council’s emerging Statement a Sub Regional Centre and stated that the Daventry District of Community Involvement (SCI). Support for this approach should plan for some 9,300 new dwellings between 2001 may be found in Planning Policy Statements (PPS) 1, 7 and and 2021. Of these, 1,500 were identified at a site on the 12. northern fringe of Northampton. The remainder were to be located mainly at Daventry. Planning for Growth 1.8 At an examination into the draft MKSM Sub Regional Strategy in Spring 2004, Daventry District Council promoted a vision 1.4 Until the 1960s, Daventry was a small market town serving for Daventry which would see the town reach a population a traditional rural hinterland. This changed in 1961 when it of 40,000 by 2021. The Council stressed that this would was identified as a location for overspill development from be a jobs and infrastructure led approach, coupled with the Birmingham. Over the last forty years, the population has expansion of the town centre as set out in the Town Centre grown to just under 23,000. This growth has resulted in the present reasonable balance between jobs and housing. DaventryDaventry StrategicStrategic DevelopmentDevelopment OptionsOptions StudyStudy -- AprilApril 20052005 Chapter 1 Introduction Vision document. The Council proposed to allow for 10,800 Each of these could have accommodated 2,500 dwellings. new dwellings during the period up to 2021. Policy SD1, and hence the SDA proposals, have since been overtaken by the MKSM Sub Regional Strategy. 1.9 The MKSM Panel Report to the ODPM of August 2004 supported the Council’s vision for the town and recommended a number of changes to the Sub Regional Strategy as a result. Daventry Town Centre Vision 2021 These changes were incorporated into the Secretary of State’s Proposed Changes to the Sub Regional Strategy, published in 1.11 In May 2004, the Council adopted a town centre vision for October 2004. For robustness, the Framework has used an Daventry, which had been prepared by the Civic Trust after upperbound figure of 8,200 dwellings and their associated wide-ranging consultation. This will run alongside the SDOS infrastructure and employment land needs to be identified and will be used to inform the preparation of the Council’s as an extension to the existing urban area. The final Strategy Local Development Documents. was due to be issued in March 2005. 1.10 Until the publication of the MKSM Sub Regional Strategy, two The Vision includes: Strategic Development Areas (SDAs) were being promoted by developers on the eastern edge of the town in the context ❒ A review of the existing economic and environmental of Policy SD1 of the 2001 Northamptonshire Structure Plan. situation 2 ❒ Four comprehensive redevelopment areas with a focus on improved retail provision ❒ A new canal arm ending in a basin at the edge of the town centre ❒ An option for a new college campus at the northern edge of the town centre ❒ Environmental and streetscape improvements ❒ Plans for ongoing management Chapter 2 Structure Daventry Strategic Development Options Study - April 2005 Chapter Two 2.4 During the WAA process, a number of scenarios were Structure identified which had the potential to deliver the proposed growth. Together with the environmental constraints analysis, Preparing the Study these were discussed at a workshop attended by officers of Daventry District and Northamptonshire County Councils. Following this , it was confirmed by the District Council that no 2.1 The Strategic Development Options Study has been limited to further consideration should be given to the redevelopment desktop analysis supplemented by site visits by key consultants and densification of existing built up areas as these were in order to provide a general appreciation of the study area. considered to be impractical and beyond the scope of the This has naturally limited the depth of study at this time. study. The findings of the Council’s Urban Capacity Study We would expect a more detailed site by site analysis to be have, however, been taken into account in order to define undertaken as the SDOS is taken forward. At the present time, the net additional housing to be accommodated on newly the Council has only sought strategic analysis and evaluation identified sites. Comments provided both at and following of the potential development areas that could house this the workshop were taken on board to guide the definition of growth by a means of urban extensions. The SDOS makes three scenarios for accommodating the proposed growth. recommendations for further detailed technical studies. 2.5 Stage Two was to draw up a number of Strategic Development 2.2 The SDOS was undertaken in two stages: Options (SDOs) for each of the broad growth scenarios and Stage One, the Wide Area Assessment, identified broad to assess their impact against environmental, social and 3 areas where development was most likely to be considered economic sustainability criteria. The SDOs aimed to create an acceptable. Daventry District Council supplied an indicative urban structure which took account of transport links, known study area to guide this process. This may be seen on Figure constraints and natural landform of each site so that impacts One overleaf. The Wide Area Assessment (WAA) involved: and need for mitigation were minimised. Consideration was given to the potential for mitigation measures at a strategic ❒ mapping and describing potential constraints on level together with infrastructure needs for sustainable development development of each scenario. ❒ identifying areas that would make the best contribution to 2.6 A second round of workshops was held in October/November the sustainable development