REEDHAM - GNLP2175, 1001, 3003, 2151
I have a number of concerns regarding the proposed sites in Reedham.
GNLP2175 - WITTON GREEN
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Specifically about this site - Sewage problems - In the last two years alone I have had to help my neighbour deal with the results of the completely inadequate sewage system in this area. The sewer at the end of the road adjoining Pottles lane regularly gets blocked and my neigbour's entire garden gets covered in raw sewage. All the sewage from 30 or 40 houses ends up on my neigbours lawn. When Anglian Water come they say the sewer was not originally designed for all the extra houses that have gone up over the last 20 years or so and the system can't cope. Anglian Water have had to do major bio-hazard clean up and the lawn has been returfed twice recently.
When I spoke to you about this you have said that Anglian Water have said there isn't a problem! - I don't feel you are getting accurate information about this area from Anglian Water.
The sewage system cannot deal with any more dwellings on this road and the new dwellings on GNLP2175 would be upstream of this problem just making it a lot worse.
WATER PRESSURE - I understand that on one occasion a fire engine was unable to get adequate water pressure to deal with a fire. On Witton Green (where I live) the water pressure often drops to well below an acceptable level and you just get a trickle. The problem has reached the point where many of us have switched back to old style storage tanks to ensure a constant supply and pressure.
OTHER PROPOSED SITES - GNLP2175, 1001, 3003, 2151
ROADS TO REEDHAM - The only Access to Reedham is from the A47 - it is locked in by the River. The main road from the A47 is tiny, winds a lot and goes through various other villages to get to the A47. It's about 8 miles that takes about 15 minutes to just get to the A47 at Acle. The roads are very narrow and very bad.
When we get snow we get locked in - last time (2 yeasr ago) for over a week it was completely unpassable. My partner tried to get home from work and ended up staying in Acle for 5 nights. (This has happened several times since I have lived here).
Recently (4 or 5 times in the last year) we have not been able to get in or out of the village due to roads flooding from rain. On two occasions in the last year the road has been blocked for 12 hours or more and we have been stranded.
A part of the road in Freethorpe (on the way to the A47) floods almost everytime it rains and has done so for years. It floods a nearby house and often remains unpassable.... And this is the main road in and out! It was like this about 10 days ago with only a relatively small amount of rain and has only just soaked away! (The solutiuon this time was to put temporary traffic lights up to make sure drivers didn't drive through the puddle - they have only just removed the lights).
My understanding is the the Highways Authority have told you that the roads are fine and there isn't a problem! - I don't think they are giving you reliable information.
The roads between Reedham and the A47 are no where near good enough to take anymore traffic associated with more development in this area.
OPEN SPACE - I notice in Norwich that the tendency is to leave some open spaces alongside new developments (and/or in between houses) leaving an open airy feel for people to enjoy. So it seems odd that in the villages there is a push to fill every gap with new houses which completely changes the character and feel of the village.
SCHOOL - You can't take into account capacity at the school because many of us choose not to send our children to Reedham School. Reedham School is a very small site, with 2 1/2 teachers - the size of the site means it can't get much bigger. Freethorpe School is much larger, has 6 or 7 teachers along with a wider variety of classrooms, teachers and pupils and so a lot of parents will prefer to send their children there as opposed to Reedham. So if you put more families in Reedham they probably won't use the local School.
Reedham School has always pushed for more children (and the funding that comes with them) but that doesn't mean it makes sense for Reedham parents to send their children there.
FINALLY - If over the coming decades there is going to be an ever increasing need for more housing then we will very quickly reach a point where no more houses can fit in the available boundary of a village. Ultimately the village boundary will have to moved further out.
Rather than ruin the feel and character of the village now perhaps it makes more sense to develop outside the Village (i.e. move the outer boundary) leaving the existing Village as it is.
However, any more development must also come with massive improvement of sewage systems, road drainage and widening and improvements of the road system to the A47 - All these are already not fit for purpose.