Draft Greater Norwich Local Plan – Part 1 The Strategy

Object

Representation ID: 23200

Received: 16/03/2020

Respondent: Orbit Homes

Agent: Armstrong Rigg Planning

Orbit Homes objects to the approach to development in Long Stratton, which proposes to allocate no additional dwellings above existing commitments to the town. The supporting text to the policy explains the reasoning for this decision at paragraph 326:

“Due to the scale of the existing commitment in Long Stratton, which will both provide a by-pass and the growth of services supporting its classification as a main town, this plan does not make further allocations in addition to Long Stratton’s Area Action Plan (AAP). Evidence shows that the scale of the commitment means that parts of the site allocated in the AAP will not be

delivered until after 2038. There may be further potential capacity for development within the existing allocation, beyond the 1,875 homes that are the subject of current planning applications; however, these would be unlikely to be delivered until late in the plan period, or beyond.”

The justification provided is therefore that because Long Stratton is allocated to grow by c.1,800 homes in the current Joint Core Strategy (2011) and Area Action Plan (2016), it should not be allocated any additional dwellings. This is not a justifiable approach as it fails to accept the failure of the 1,800 home allocation to deliver any new homes despite being a key component of the current development plan and not the emerging Local Plan. The reality of the situation is that the 1,800 home allocation is likely to continue to be much delayed and its failure to progress has meant that Long Stratton has had very little growth over the last 10 years and certainly below the level of growth appropriate for an aspiring new town. Growth is needed now to meet current pent up needs, including a critical need for affordable housing, and deliverable sites should not be prevented from coming forwards to meet this need just because a large housing allocation that remains fundamentally stalled may at some point start to deliver dwellings in the town. The unreasonableness of this justification is further demonstrated by the fact that Wymondham, which was similarly allocated significant growth in the JCS, but where a significant proportion of this growth has been delivered, is proposed to accommodate a further 100 dwellings and a potential 1,000 dwelling contingency site in the GNLP. Long Stratton by comparison is prevented from being allocated further much needed growth due to the failure of the existing allocation.

The key issue with the delivery of the 1,800 allocation in Long Stratton is that it is reliant on the delivery of a new bypass before the occupation of the 250th new dwelling, but the development is unable to viably deliver this bypass without significant government funding and no decision on this funding has yet been made. Planning applications have been submitted for the allocation, but they cannot be approved until the bypass has been secured. It was initially predicted that the site would have delivered 420 dwellings by the end of 2019/20 (and would now be delivering 230 dwellings per year) 1 and yet it has so far failed to deliver any dwellings and is highly unlikely to start delivering for several years (if at all). In this context, it is essential that the GNLP recognises the need for growth in Long Stratton and takes the opportunity to allocate additional growth to the town to help meet the increased housing requirement identified in Orbit Homes’ representation to Policy 1.

The need to identify an additional deliverable housing site is therefore particularly acute in Long Stratton and as set out in Orbit Homes’ representations to the Site Document for Long Stratton, Land south of St Mary’s Road, Long Stratton (ref. GNLP0509) is the only option that has been consistently assessed as suitable by the Council. It therefore essential that it is allocated to meet current local needs as soon as possible.