Policy information sourced from the Epping Forest District Local Plan 2011-2033

SP3 Development & Delivery of Garden Communities in the Harlow and Gilston Garden Town

  • The following three Garden Communities are planned in the Harlow and Gilston Garden Town within Epping Forest District:
    1. Latton Priory;
    2. Water Lane Area; and
    3. East of Harlow
  • Development within the Garden Communities will be holistically and comprehensively planned with a distinct identity that responds directly to its context and is of sufficient scale to incorporate a range of homes, employment, education and community facilities, greenspace and other uses to enable residents to meet the majority of their day-to-day needs. Delivery of each new Garden Community will be phased and underpinned by a comprehensive package of infrastructure as set out within the Infrastructure Delivery Plan Schedules.
  • The design, development and phased delivery of each Garden Community must accord with the following principles:
    1. The public sector will work pro-actively and collaboratively with the private sector to design, and bring forward the Garden Communities to:
      • secure a high quality of place shaping;
      • ensure the timely delivery of both the on-site and off-site infrastructure required to address the impact of these new communities; and
      • provide and fund a mechanism for future stewardship, management, maintenance and renewal of community infrastructure and assets;
    2. Community and stakeholder empowerment will be embedded in the design and delivery of each Garden Community from the outset and include a long term community engagement strategy;
    3. Inclusion of opportunities for communityled housing development and a requirement to deliver a mixture of tenures for new dwellings;
    4. Agreeing appropriate and sustainable long term governance and stewardship arrangements for community assets including heritage assets, greenspace, the public realm areas and community and other relevant facilities prior to the determination of outline planning applications. Such arrangements will be funded by the development and include community representation to ensure residents have a stake in long term development, stewardship and management of their community;
    5. A Strategic Masterplan will be developed for each of the Garden Communities setting out the key development, design and delivery principles and to guide proposals. Planning applications and any other consenting mechanisms for the Garden Communities should be accompanied by Strategic Masterplans which demonstrate that the development requirements set out in the Policy have been accommodated and which have been endorsed by the Council and where appropriate Harlow District Council. Endorsed Strategic Masterplans will be taken into account as an important materal consideration in the determination of any planning applications;
    6. Be consistent with and adhere to any relevant Design Code(s) which has been approved by Epping Forest District Council and where appropriate Harlow District Council;
    7. Strategic Masterplans and subsequent applications should be considered and informed by the Quality Review Panel for the Harlow and Gilston Garden Town and be subject to public consultation, including in respect of Masterplans, consultation with all those with a development interest in the defined area;
    8. Promotion and execution of the highest quality of planning, design and management of the built and public realm so that the Garden Communities are characterised as distinctive places that capitalise on local assets and establish environments that promote health, happiness and well being. Proposals should have regard to the Harlow and Gilston Garden Town Vision and Design Guide, and have regard to the original guiding principles established by Sir Frederick Gibberd’s Masterplan for Harlow, including the Green Wedge Network;
    9. Ensure that on-site and off-site infrastructure is provided in a timely manner, subject to viability considerations, ahead of or in tandem with the development it supports to mitigate any impacts, meet the needs of residents and establish sustainable travel patterns;
    10. Provide for balanced and inclusive communities through a mix of homes of different sizes, tenures and types. Provision should be made for self and custom-built homes and the needs of an ageing population;
    11. Provide and promote appropriate opportunities for small-scale employment generating uses;
    12. Ensure the provision of integrated and sustainable transport systems for Harlow and Gilston Garden Town that put walking, cycling and public transport networks and connections at the heart of growth in the area, to create a step change in modal shift through providing for, encouraging and actively promoting more sustainable travel patterns;
    13. Contribute to the delivery of the Sustainable Transport Corridors and the establishment of an integrated, accessible and safe transport system which maximises the use of the sustainable transport modes of walking, cycling and public/community transport, and reduces single occupancy car use, in order to improve air quality, reduce emissions and promote healthy lifestyles. Development must provide high quality, safe and direct walking and cycling routes and linkages to and from Harlow which give priority over vehicular traffic;
    14. Create sociable, vibrant, healthy and walkable neighbourhoods with access for all to local employment opportunities, a range of community services and facilities including health, education, retail, culture, community meeting spaces, multifunctional open space, the Green Wedge Network, sports and leisure facilities and to high quality digital infrastructure;
    15. Develop and comply with specific Garden Town parking approaches and standards recognising that car ownership will need to be accommodated without impacting on the quality of place, and sustainable transport objectives whilst making the best use of land;
    16. Create distinctive environments which relate to the surrounding area, take full account of topography and landform, protect or enhance the natural and historic landscapes and systems and wider historic environment, provide a multi-functional green and blue infrastructure network to support habitat protection, improve biodiversity, and connect to existing corridors and networks;
    17. Develop a positive and coordinated approach towards the conservation and enhancement of heritage assets and their settings in accordance with national policy;
    18. Integrate a sustainable approach to design and construction that secures net gains in biodiversity and the highest standards of energy efficiency and innovation in technology;
    19. Ensure that appropriate measures are put in place to equalise and apportion the cost of shared infrastructure and associated land contributions; and
    20. Ensure key transport interventions (such as highway improvements and provision of sustainable transport providing viable alternatives to the private car) are provided commensurate with the phasing of development; and as a prerequisite of the occupation of development, where this is necessary to avoid significant harm. Measures to ensure future upkeep/maintenance of sustainable transport provision will be required.

For more information please see the Epping Forest District Local Plan 2011-2033