Policy information sourced from Thurrock Core Strategy and Policies for Management of Development

CSSP4 - SUSTAINABLE GREEN BELT

Balancing competing demands on the Thurrock Green Belt

The Council’s policy is to maintain the purpose, function and open character of the Green Belt in Thurrock in accordance with the provisions of PPG2 for the plan period.

The Council will:

  • Maintain the permanence of the boundaries of the Green Belt, excepting the proposed Urban Extension Broad Locations Identified in this policy, Policy CSSP 1 and as shown on the Proposals Map.
  • Resist development where there would be any danger of coalescence.
  • Maximise opportunities for increased public access, leisure and biodiversity.

All without prejudice to and pending:

  • The formal Review of the Thurrock Core Strategy DPD that the Council will commence in 2011 In accordance with the requirements of the proposed Localism Act and the proposed National Planning Policy Framework.

Locating sustainable development at Broad Locations adjoining the Thurrock Urban Area and Outlying Settlements.

The Council will direct development to the following Urban Extension Broad Locations subject to the provisions of policies CSSP1, CSSP2, CSSP3, CSTP1 and the provisions set out below:

Opportunities for Leisure and Sport in the Green Belt

  • The Council’s policy is that the constructive and positive use of the Green Belt for sports and leisure purposes is an essential component of the Thurrock Spatial Strategy that will underpin the sustainable development and regeneration of Thurrock to the long-term benefit of local people.
  • The Council will actively encourage the pursuit of leisure and sports activities appropriate to the Green Belt by improving connectivity between Thurrock’s Urban Areas and the Green Belt to promote this asset for the enjoyment and well being of Thurrock’s communities.
  • In particular, the Council will support the development of Sports Hubs in Green Belt land at North East Grays and at Belhus (shown on the Key Diagram and included in the Adopted Site Specific Allocations and Policies DPD and identified on the Proposals Map).

Opportunities for Economic Development

Broad Location: Tilbury Marshes

The Council will support the principle of release of Green Belt land (26 Ha.) to the North of Tilbury for port-related employment use and a Strategic Lorry Park to facilitate expansion of Tilbury Port. The Council will require management arrangements to be put in place for the remainder of the Tilbury Marshes site that has important biodiversity interest and required mitigation measures to be implemented to replace lost habitat and flood storage areas. The final site boundaries will be included in the Adopted Sites Specific Allocations and Policies DPD and identified on the Proposals Map.

Opportunities for improving for Educational provision

Belhus School Site

The Council supports the potential relocation of the school for the Ormiston Trust Academy within the Belhus School Site.

Broad Location: North-East Grays – Relocation of the Secondary School and College within the Green Belt

The Council will support the relocation of a school currently located within the Green Belt at the North Grays Broad Location as complementary development to the proposed new Sports Hub and the relocation of a college to Grays Learning Campus town centre site. The final site boundaries will be included in the Adopted Site Specific Allocations and Policies DPD and identified on the Proposals Map. The vacated sites will be available for housing development (See 3.I.i below)

Broad Location: NE Stanford-le-hope/Corringham

The Council will release land within the Green Belt if required to the NE of Stanford-le-hope / Corringham to provide for a new replacement secondary school (see Key Diagram).

The vacated school site (currently “white land” in the Local Plan) would then be available for housing development.

Housing Land Supply to 2021

The following Broad Locations have been identified as Green Belt releases to contribute to the housing supply to 2021:

A) North East Grays – 461

(Identified potential capacity from school and college site, see 2 III.iii above) The final site boundaries will be included in the Adopted Site Specific Allocations and Policies DPD and identified on the Proposals Map.

B) Stanford-le-hope – 328

(provided no dwellings, including its curtilage, is located on areas modelled to be Flood Zone 3b, including an appropriate allowance for climate change). The final site boundaries will be included in the Adopted Site Specific Allocations and Policies DPD and identified on the Proposals Map.

The Council considers that this relatively small-scale housing allocation on sites within the Green Belt is required to ensure a robust and deliverable policy whilst entirely reasonable and proportional to the Thurrock context.

This policy approach will be reviewed with regard to the final outcome of the East of England Plan Review 2011 or successor document the evolving new Local Plans system and the proposed National Planning Policy Framework.

Enhancing the Green Belt

Sustainable Boundaries

The Council will seek to reinforce the Green Belt boundary through structural enhancement of the local landscape features. The Council will secure structural landscape enhancements in accordance with Landscape Character Assessments and they will be delivered by developers as part of an overall contribution package linked to development schemes.

Public access, open space and biodiversity

The implementation of the Greengrid Strategy will form a critical component of the overall Green Belt strategy to retain open character, enhance public access and secure biodiversity within Green Belt.

Sustainable Design and Construction

Developers proposing schemes within the Green Belt will have to fully comply with the relevant Thematic and Development Management policies in this plan.

Green Belt Alterations to Proposals Map

Land excluded from the Green Belt because planning permission has been granted for housing at Batafield, East Tilbury and land south of Aveley By-pass and employment land at Ponds Farm, Purfleet.

The Council proposes to include 55.3 hectares of previously safeguarded land adjacent to the former Shell Haven refinery site that was identified as oil refinery expansion land. With the cessation of the refinery use at Shell Haven and recent decision of the Secretary of State to exclude the land for development purposes from the London Gateway scheme, the land will assist in the purposes of the Green Belt in maintaining a strategic gap between the residential settlements of Stanford le hope and Corringham and the port at London Gateway.

The Council proposes 1.6 hectares of land is excluded from the Green Belt that has planning permission for housing development and is part of the major development site at Orsett and is incorrectly shown in the Local Plan as Green Belt.

KEY DIAGRAMS/MAPS

Broad Locations are shown on the Key Diagram and Proposals Map. Sites will be included in the Adopted Sites Specific Allocations and Policies DPD and identified on the Proposals Map.

For more information please see the Core Strategy and Policies for Management of Development