Policy information sourced from the Braintree District Council Local Plan 2013-2033.

SP 9: Tendring/Colchester Borders Garden Community.

The Development Plan Document (DPD) required for the Tendring / Colchester Borders Garden Community by Policy SP8 will define the boundary of the new community and the amount of development it will contain. The adoption of the DPD will be contingent on the completion of a Heritage Impact Assessment carried out in accordance with Historic England guidance. The Heritage Impact Assessment will assess the impact of proposed allocations upon the historic environment, inform the appropriate extent and capacity of the development and establish any mitigation measures necessary. The DPD will be produced in consultation with the local community and stakeholders and will include a concept plan showing the disposition and quantity of future land-uses, and give a three dimensional indication of the urban design and landscape parameters which will be incorporated into any future planning applications; together with a phasing and implementation strategy which sets out how the rate of development will be linked to the provision of the necessary social, physical and environmental infrastructure to ensure that the respective phases of the development do not come forward until the necessary infrastructure has been secured. The DPD and any application for planning permission for development forming part of the garden community must be consistent with the requirements set out in this policy.

For the Plan period up to 2033, housing delivery from the garden community, irrespective of its actual location, will be distributed equally between Colchester Borough Council and Tendring District Council. If, after taking into account its share of delivery from the garden community, either of those authorities has a shortfall in delivery against the housing requirement for its area, it will need to make up the shortfall within its own area. It may not use the other authority’s share of delivery from the garden community to make up the shortfall.

The DPD and any planning application will address the following principles and requirements in the design, development and delivery of the new garden community:

Place-Making and Design Quality

  • The development of a new garden community to high standards of design and layout drawing on its context and the considerable assets within its boundaries such as woodland, streams and changes in topography, as well as the opportunities afforded by the proximity of the University of Essex campus to create a new garden community that is innovative, contemporary and technologically enabled, set within a strong green framework with new neighbourhood centres at its heart. It will be designed and developed to have its own identity and be as self-sustaining as possible recognising its location close to the edge of Colchester. It will secure appropriate integration with Colchester and the nearby University of Essex campus by the provision of suitable walking and cycling links and rapid public transport systems and connections to enable residents of the new community to have convenient access to town centre services and facilities in Colchester as well as Elmstead Market. Clear separation will be maintained between the new garden community and the nearby villages of Elmstead Market and Wivenhoe. Safeguarding the important green edge to Colchester will be essential with a new country park provided along the Salary Brook corridor and incorporating Churn Wood.
  • Detailed masterplans and design guidance, based on a robust assessment of historic and natural environmental constraints and opportunities for enhancement, will be adopted to inform and guide development proposals and planning applications for the garden community.

Housing

  • A mix of housing types and tenures including self- and custom-build and starter homes will be provided on the site, including a minimum of 30% affordable housing. The affordable housing will be phased through the development.
  • New residential development will seek to achieve appropriate densities which reflect both context, place-making aspirations and opportunities for increased levels of development around neighbourhood centres and transport hubs.

Employment and Jobs

  • The garden community will make provision for a wide range of jobs, skills and training opportunities. The DPD will allocate about 25 hectares of B use employment land within the garden community. This may include provision for office, research & development, light industrial and/or other employment generating uses towards the south of the site in proximity to the existing University of Essex and Knowledge Gateway and provision for office, research & development, industrial, storage and distribution uses towards the north of the site close to the A120.
  • High speed and reliable broadband will be provided and homes will include specific spaces to enable working from home.

Transportation

  • A package of measures will be introduced to encourage smarter transport choices to meet the needs of the new community and to maximise the opportunities for sustainable travel. Policy SP6 requires planning consent and full funding approval for the A120-A133 link road and Route 1 of the rapid transit system to have been secured before planning approval is granted for any development at the garden community. Additional transport priorities include the provision of a network of footpaths, cycleways and bridleways to enhance permeability within the site and to access and to access the adjoining areas; park and ride facilities and other effective integrated measures to mitigate the transport impacts of the proposed development on the strategic and local road network. Longer term transport interventions will need to be carefully designed to minimise the impacts on the strategic and local transport network and fully mitigate any environmental or traffic impacts arising from the development.
  • Foot and cycle ways shall be provided throughout the development and connecting with the surrounding urban areas and countryside, including seamlessly linking key development areas to the University of Essex, Hythe station and Colchester Town Centre.
  • Primary vehicular access to the site will be provided off the A120 and A133. Any other road improvements required to meet needs arising from the garden community will be set out in the DPD and further defined as part of the masterplanning process.
  • Other specific transport-related infrastructure requirements identified through the Strategic Growth Development Plan Document and masterplans for this garden community will be delivered in a phased manner.

Community Infrastructure

  • District and neighbourhood centres of an appropriate scale will be provided to serve the proposed development. The centres will be located where they will be easily accessible by walking, cycling and public transit to the majority of residents in the garden community.
  • Community meeting places will be provided within the local centres.
  • Increased primary healthcare capacity will be provided to serve the new development as appropriate. This may be by means of new infrastructure or improvement, reconfiguration, extension or relocation of existing medical facilities.
  • A secondary school, primary schools and early-years facilities will be provided to serve the new development.
  • A network of multi-functional green infrastructure will be provided within the garden community incorporating key elements of the existing green assets within the site. It will include community parks, allotments, a new country park, the provision of sports areas with associated facilities; and play facilities.
  • Indoor leisure and sports facilities will be provided within the new community, or contributions made to the improvement of off-site leisure facilities to serve the new development.

Other Requirements

  • The delivery of smart, innovative and sustainable water efficiency/re-use solutions that fosters climate resilience and a 21st century approach towards water supply, water and waste water treatment and flood risk management. Taking a strategic approach to flood risk through the use of Strategic Flood Risk Assessments and the updated Climate Projections 2019 and identifying opportunities for Natural Flood Risk Management. Provision of improvements to waste water treatment plant including an upgrade to the Colchester Waste Water Treatment Plan and off-site drainage improvements aligned with the phasing of the development within the plan period and that proposed post 2033. To ensure new development does not have an adverse effect on any European Protected or nationally important site and complies with environmental legislation (notably the Water Framework Directive and the Habitats Directive), the required waste water treatment capacity must be available ahead of the occupation of dwellings.
  • Landscape buffers between the site and existing development in Colchester, Wivenhoe and Elmstead Market.
  • Conserve and where appropriate enhance the significance of heritage assets (including any contribution made by their settings) both within and surrounding the site. Designated heritage assets within the garden community area include Grade II listed Allen’s Farmhouse, Ivy Cottage, Lamberts, and three buildings at Hill farmhouse. Designated heritage assets nearby include the grade I listed Church of St Anne and St Lawrence, grade II* listed Wivenhoe House, Elmstead Hall and Spring Valley Mill and numerous grade II listed buildings as well as the grade II listed Wivenhoe Registered Park and Garden. Harm to the significance of a designated heritage asset should be avoided in the first instance.
  • Avoidance,protection and/or enhancement of biodiversity assets within and surrounding the site; including Bullock Wood SSSI, Ardleigh Gravel Pits SSSI, Wivenhoe Pits SSSI and Upper Colne Marshes SSSI and relevant European protected sites. Contributions will be secured towards mitigation measures in accordance with the Essex Coast Recreational disturbance Avoidance and Mitigation Strategy. Wintering bird surveys will be undertaken at the appropriate time of year as part of the DPD preparation to identify any offsite functional habitat. Should any be identified, development must firstly avoid impacts. Where this is not possible, development must be phased to deliver habitat creation and management either on- or off-site to mitigate any significant impacts. Any such habitat must be provided and fully functional before any development takes place which would affect significant numbers of SPA birds.
  • Provision of appropriate buffers along strategic road and rail infrastructure to protect new development.
  • Provision of appropriate design and infrastructure that incorporates the highest standards of innovation in energy efficiency and technology to reduce impact of climate change, water efficiency (with the aim of being water neutral in areas of serious water stress), and sustainable waste / recycling management facilities.
  • Measures to support the development of the new community including provision of community development support workers (or other provision) for a minimum of ten years from initial occupation of the first homes and appropriate community governance structures.
  • Establishment at an early stage in the development of the garden community, of appropriate and sustainable long-term governance and stewardship arrangements for community assets including green space, public realm areas and community and other relevant facilities; such arrangements to be funded by the development and include community representation to ensure residents have a stake in the long term development, stewardship and management of their community.
  • Allocation of additional land within the garden community, to accommodate University expansion, which is at least equivalent in size to the allocation in the Colchester Local Development Framework Site Allocations document October 2010.

For more information, please visit Braintree District Council’s Local Plan here.