GNLP0310

Development of this site would ruin the rural character of Seamere Road and add to the existing problems of surface water flooding. It would also ensure that the much larger GNLP 0520 would be granted automatically.

I would like to raise a number of objections to the future housing development currently under consideration in the village of Hingham, and specifically the eastern development area of GNLP0310.

My particular concern is how these proposals may impact detrimentally upon both the character and rural quality of this easternmost area of Hingham village as well upon the historically important dwelling, The Meeting House, 42 Seamere Road.

The house is located at the eastern end of Seamere Road. It is a Grade II Listed building and its relatively isolated location reflects its previous function as a Quaker Meeting House (active 1680 to 1926). The earlier attached building dates probably from the late 16th or early 17th century and was at one time the home of Samuel Lincoln - who after his journey to the New World was to be the forbear of Abraham Lincoln.

My specific concerns about potential house development within the proposed area of GNLP0310 are:

1. The development area is disproportionally out of scale with the rural quality and character of this eastern side of the village. Permission is being sort by the land agent for GNLP0310 to site 172 dwellings. The construction zone would extend hard against the eastern boundary of The Meeting House, and if the adjacent development of GNLP0520 were also to proceed the property would be surrounded entirely on two sides of its boundaries.

2. Seamere Road provides very significant amenity value to dog walkers and hikers alike. The route extends along Seamere Road leading away from the village, then turns south on a footpath before heading back to Hingham.

The unimpeded view walkers currently enjoy looking north across farmland towards the church tower of St Andrew's church will be entirely lost if the development plans for GNLP0520 and GNLP0310 were to proceed. Such a loss to the value of this amenity would be significantly detrimental to the quality of life enjoyed by many in the village.

3. If both GNLP0520 and GNLP0310 were to proceed this would potentially introduce a combined total of 472 dwellings, which in addition to the 93 currently being built on land adjacent to these two new sites (HIN10) would produce a total of nearly 600 houses.

Such a vast estate grafted on to the east side of Hingham would unquestionably create an unsustainable level of development inverting the current ecological equilibrium prevalent throughout the village between the significant historic centre and a gentler more appropriate increment of new dwellings infilling available and appropriately scaled sites around the perimeter.

While the need for new homes is of course a pressing issue, in this instance the potential harm likely to be caused to the current balanced rural ecology of Hingham were these over-sized plots to be developed would result in irreversible damage to those very qualities that both present and future generations of residents of this important Norfolk village so rightly cherish.

Development of proposed site would be highly inappropriate due to several constraints:
Flooding - site is sloping and on high ground, meaning it would cause similar and worse flooding to lower lying land and houses as seen with the 'Hops' development nearby.
Safety - road/traffic speed and curves mean this would be a dangerous place to create side roads or increase traffic.
Industry - land is opposite a designated industrial and employment site, and creation of large amounts of residential development could endanger the future of local economy.
Conservation - areas of this land are designated conservation sites which prohibit development. Land forms part of the view upon the approach to Hingham form the East, which is protected in by-laws which were observed in the planning process for the 'Hops', and would create a corridor approach to Hingham which would permanently alter the aesthetic of a historic town and damage tourism, and thus employment, both present and future.
Impact - development of this site would disproportionately disrupt, inconvenience and impact the East side of the town, which has tollerated the visual change, noise and debris of the 'Hops' for the past 2.5 years.

Hingham likely to require 50 further homes in the next phase, and this site is oversized for the allocation and so should not be considered an option. Homes on this site would also be a considerable distance from the town centre, with no safe cycle or pavement access.
Hingham's local resources, including doctors surgery and school, are close to capacity and a development of this size would create an unsustainable overcrowding of facilities.

Hingham is a small market town on the B1108 almost equidistant from Dereham, Watton, Attleborough and Wymondham. All of these towns are expanding rapidly and this growth is having a negative impact on the road system and quality of life for residents in Hingham.

Before there is any further development in the above towns or in Hingham the highways' authority must improve the junction between the B1108 and the Attleborough/Dereham Road. Widening of the pavements in the town is needed, especially those alongside the B1108, and also a pedestrian crossing is needed on the B1108.

Most of the sites put forward by land owners for consideration for future housing in Hingham would mean considerable development on one or two sites but the Hingham Town Council's expressed view is that if there must be further development then these developments should be small in scale, between 10 and 20 properties, and spread round the areas offered. The building of smaller developments can make it easier for new residents to integrate into the community. However, there are concerns that larger developments are often viewed in isolation by existing residents of the Town and those who come to reside in these new developments seem to become their own community rather than part of "the bigger picture"

If there is to be further development in Hingham then the Council believes that as well as the highway issues already mentioned, the Primary School will need to be enlarged and/or updated and in particular it will need the provision of a hall/gym so that the National Curriculum can be taught more easily. Also, while the surgery is considered to be one of the best in the country, if the Town expands, then this too will need to be extended further.

The current playing field situated on the Watton Road, Hingham is an area of 8.8 acres which was purchased by Hingham Town Council nearly 40 years ago, when the population of Hingham was considerably less than it is now. Within this 8.8acres there is a 3 badminton court sized sports' hall, with changing rooms etc, a car park, tennis courts, a children's' play area and a skate park, as well as a football and cricket pitch.

The recommendation of the National Playing Field Association (NPFA) is that there should be a minimum standard for 'outdoor playing space' of 2.4 hectares per 1,000 population, of which 3 acres per 1000 population should be for pitch sports.

While there are a few other play areas, for children, in Hingham, the only sports' pitches in the town are those located on the Playing Field on Watton Road. It is clear that the present field does not currently meet the minimum standard as regards size as recommended by the NPFA and is not sufficient for the current population let alone any future increase. So it is proposed that an area of land directly to the North of the current playing field on Watton Road including sites GNLP 0502 and GNLP 0501 should be allocated for the future extension of the current playing field and a larger car park, and not allocated for the provision of housing.

The land available in Hingham Cemetery for burials may run out during the lifetime of the next local plan. It is therefore proposed that all that area of land directly to the north of Hingham Cemetery, on the Attleborough Road, including site GNLP0395 should be allocated as land for an extension to the current cemetery and not for housing. This site could also include the provision of a car park to be used in conjunction with the cemetery, for users of the Church, Hingham residents/workers and visitors to the town. Part of this area could also be turned into small nature area that would enhance the biodiversity in the Town.

The most recent housing development in Hingham, 'The Hops', which is still under construction, has added considerable extra load on the drainage system especially after heavy rain and any additional housing in GNLP0520 and GNLP0310 would only exacerbate this problem.

Again with the above suggested sites there would considerable issues regarding safe walking routes including controlled crossings along the B1108. These safety issues would also arise if housing were to be built on sites GNLP0298 and GNLP0335. There are already concerns being raised by residents living in Rectory Gardens about the lack of safe walking and crossing of the B1108 and more houses would magnify these concerns.

In addition to concerns about large scale development in Hingham, Hingham Town Council considers that small scale housing developments should be allowed in those smaller communities which have had little if any development in recent years. Enabling growth in these small villages would bring in much needed finance via CIL payments, thus helping to maintain services but would also allow local people to stay in their own communities.

Concerns have also been expressed about the appearance of many modern developments in that they are all very formulaic and when they are the first thing that visitors see on entering the Town then more consideration needs to be given to the look of the properties and not just their functionality.