GNLP2183

The land drainage down Wymondham Road has been problematic for many years and after much hassle Norfolk County Council undertook a Flood Risk assessment report in 2014.

It is important that the flow of of water in the submerged piped drain flowing along Wymondham Road is improved as this continues to back up regularly (due to problems of pipe capacity at The Loke) and floods the fronts of various properties along the north of Wymondham road.

The housing development proposed should preserve and enlarge the open ditch flowing along its boundary and as a benefit to residents along Wymondham Road should improve the flows across the road from north to the south of Wymondham road - both at the Loke (South View on the map) and bi inserting a new pipe across the road from the Sunningdale residence which is a regularly overflow and flooding point for the submerged pipe.

The drainage issues along Wymondham Road should be a material consideration for this application.

Any approval should have five conditions for the developers:

1) Maintain an open ditch along the 2.1ha planning proposal area and improve its flow
2) Improve the flow across Wymondham road at The Loke (around South View residence on the map)
3) Provide funds to construct (or insert) another pipe/culvert across Wymondham road into the open ditch (ideally about Sunningdale residence) to deflect the flow in the covered pipe at this point
4) Clear the small pipe that flows along the north of Wymondham Road from The Loke
5) Work with the Parish Council, South Norfolk Council and Norfolk County Council to plan and address points 1-3 above

The existing South Norfolk Local Plan, which was formally adopted on 26 October 2015 and covers the period up to 2026 allocated ten houses to Wreningham.
Since 2015 Wreningham has already seen at least 15 homes built.
Given this background, I would question whether Wreningham is suitable for an additional development of this size which is, by some way, the largest to have ever been proposed in the village and is out of keeping with the existing village environment.
As well as being at flood risk itself, such a sizeable development is likely to add to the existing flood issues experienced on Wymondham Road.
If further development is to be allowed in Wreningham, it should be in much smaller infill developments which are more appropriate to the size and capacity of the village, its limited facilities and its narrow roads.

Wymondham Rd is a narrow lane with limited passing places and no pavement. The addition of yet more housing into an already congested village will make traffic issues even more pronounced and an increased danger to pedestrians, many of whom will be children walking to school.

This proposed development sits outside the settlement boundary ie the existing village boundary and therefore the tranquillity of the village needs to be protected.

Wreningham has already taken more than its fair share of housing development with around 15 new properties being built in recent years despite concern by the Roads Department about the pressure on roads in the area. The addition of these proposed dwellings at the start of the village can only cause further issues.

The additional houses will do little to ease the housing shortage across the county and especially in comparison to the very large estates being developed on the outskirts of Norwich, Wymondham and Silfield.

There is likely to be significant ecological impact. The area is frequented by various birds and animals.

The facilities in the village are unable to cope with the additional demand that would be placed on them including but not limited to;
- sewage (Anglian Water have installed very limited capacity)
- schools (Wreningham Primary school is already over subscribed for next school year)
- there is no doctor's surgery nor shops in the village

To my knowledge no flood impact survey has been completed as part of the application.