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Merry Christmas to all our supporters
CPRE Kent wishes all its supporters and friends a very Merry Christmas. It has been a challenging year with some highs and lows and with the increasing pressure of higher and higher housing targets and demand for infrastructure our work is more important than ever.
Our victory at the Court of Appeal in getting planning permission quashed for more than 600 homes on the AONB at Farthingloe was a memorable and far-reaching achievement. Meanwhile plans for huge housing developments on our beautiful countryside look set to go ahead including 4,000 at Mountfield, south Canterbury, and 12,000 at Otterpool Park in Shepway.
Transport infrastructure continues to remain high focus – we await a decision on the Lower Thames crossing, Heathrow has been chosen for expansion and of course the giant Operation Stack lorry park is due to open, possibly as early as next summer.
It was wonderful to celebrate CPRE’s 90th anniversary with our garden party at Hever castle in September. To read more on the historic formation of our charity see here.
We will continue to engage in local plans, major planning applications and other consultations and campaign to protect our wonderful landscapes. We do make a difference and it is thanks to our members, volunteers and supporters that we do.
Merry Christmas from all the staff at Charing – Hilary, Vicky, Susannah, Jillian and Paul.
December 19th
- A number of important documents have yet to emerge. For example, a rigorous transport plan and a finalised air-quality assessment. The latter is critical given that allocations at Teynham will feed extra traffic into AQMAs.
- There seems to be no coherent plan for infrastructure delivery – a key component of the plan given the allocations being proposed near the already crowded Junction 7.
- There seems to have been little or no cooperation with neighbouring boroughs or even parish councils within Swale itself.
The removal of a second consultation might have been understandable if this final version of the plan were similar to that being talked about at the beginning of the consultation process. It is, however, radically different in the following ways:
- There has been a major shift in the balance of housing allocations, away from the west of the borough over to the east, especially around the historic town of Faversham. This is a move that raises many concerns.
- A new large allocation, with accompanying A2 bypass, has appeared around Teynham and Lynsted, to which we are objecting.
- Housing allocations in the AONB around Neames Forstal that were judged “unsuitable” by the council’s own officers have now appeared as part of the housing numbers.
- Most of the housing allocations being proposed are on greenfield sites, many of them on Grade 1 agricultural land – a point to which we are strongly objecting.
Concerns about the rush to submit the plan
The haste with which the plan is being prepared is especially worrying given the concentration of housing in Faversham. If the town is to take a large amount of new housing, it is imperative that the policies concerning the area are carefully worked out to preserve, as far as possible, the unique nature of the town. The rush to submit the plan is likely to prove detrimental.
As Swale does not have a five-year land housing supply, it is open to speculative development proposals, many of which would run counter to the ideas contained in the current plan. Some are already appearing. This is a common situation, and one that, doubtless, is a reason behind Swale’s haste.
Our overriding fear, however, is that this emphasis on haste is ultimately going to prove counterproductive. This is because it is our view that the plan, in its current form, is unlikely to pass independent examination. We are urging Swale to listen to and act upon the comments being made about the plan and to return the plan to the council with appropriate modifications before submitting it to the Secretary of State.
Essentially, this means treating the current consultation not as the final one but as the ‘lost’ second consultation.
The consultation ends on Friday 30 April and we strongly urge residents to make their opinions known if they have not already done so.
Further information
