February 2022
Local Plan update
Another difficult problem we have inherited is the Local Plan. On 7 February, the Local Plan Inspector sent a new letter to the Council about the Plan. He once again stated that there is no certainty the Plan will be approved but that, if the Council wished to proceed and not withdraw its Plan, he will need additional information supplied to a strict timetable and with monthly updates on progress. The Council is now considering the options.
The Inspector’s letter can be read here click here
September 2021
The Tandridge Local Plan Inspector has sent a new letter to the Council stating that “..although I will not reach a final decision on the way forward until I have had the opportunity to consider the Council’s response to this letter, I am of the view that withdrawal of the plan from examination is looking like the most appropriate option given the circumstances.” The Inspector’s letter can be read here click here
He wrote in response to a letter from Tandridge District Council explaining that there would be a further delay to the traffic modelling for junction 6 of the M25. Because of the delay which meant missing a deadline for it set by the Inspector, the Council also proposed an alternative option of shortening the Plan period as a way forward which potentially removes the option of the South Godstone garden village which has proved such a sticking point because of pressure on junction 6 of the M25 and other roads. To read the letter click here
This was agreed at a meeting of the Planning Policy Committee on 26 August which can be seen on this link click here
See item 7 “Local Plan update - response to the Planning Inspector” and also, for clarity about the difficulties OLRG has faced, item 4 “Standing Order 30 questions”.
Last December, the Inspector gave the Council his preliminary conclusions. He stated that he had significant concerns about the Plan’s soundness.
He gave the Council two choices: to continue with the Plan and try to address his concerns on a number of matters or to withdraw it and start a new Plan.
We became the administration at Tandridge District Council 4 months ago and inherited the situation with the Local Plan left to us by the Conservative administration. It has always been our greatest worry that the Plan would be found unsound and the District left without a Local Plan which could lead to speculative applications on the Green Belt and uncontrolled and unsuitable development.
The Local Plan has so far cost Tandridge taxpayers more than £3million. We put forward the alternative option to try to salvage at least some of the work and to put a sound Plan in place.
In light of the Inspector’s latest letter, the Council is considering the next steps carefully before replying and he has helpfully given us some time to do so.
February 2021
The Planning Inspector examining the Tandridge Local Plan has agreed to the Council’s request for another 3 months to carry out more transport modelling on junction 6 of the M25 to try to address his concerns. So far, the Council has spent around £3million on its Plan.
Last December, the Inspector gave the Council his preliminary conclusions. He stated that he had significant concerns about the Plan’s soundness and also that the absence of evidence for funding improvements to Junction 6 and other road improvements means it has not been demonstrated that the Council’s proposed Garden Community of 4,000 homes on Green Belt at South Godstone “can be considered as being deliverable or developable.”
He gave the Council two choices: to continue with the Plan and try to address his concerns on a number of matters or to withdraw it and start a new Plan.
The Council replied asking to carry out more transport modelling before it makes a decision click here
This week the Inspector sent this response click here
December 2020: Inspector's preliminary findings
The Planning Inspector examining the Tandridge Local Plan has now sent the Council his preliminary conclusions. His 18 page letter is on this link:
click here
Paragraph 10 explains that the absence of evidence for funding improvements to Junction 6 of the M25 and other road improvements means that it has not been demonstrated that the Council’s proposed Garden Community of 4,000 homes on Green Belt at South Godstone is deliverable or developable.
Paragraph 11 goes on to say that he has “significant concerns about the soundness of the Plan given that I cannot conclude that the spatial strategy is justified, a number of the proposals of the Plan do not appear effective and in terms of effects on the transport network, the Plan would not be consistent with national policy.”
He then explains in paragraph 62 that “there are still significant uncertainties regarding fundamental issues about housing need and supply” and that the “unresolved questions around the provision of strategic transport infrastructure casts doubt on the capacity of the strategic transport network to accommodate development in the District.”
The Council wants to remove from the Green Belt the Moorhouse site next to the Grasshopper pub on the A25 between Limpsfield and Westerham which is in the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). The Inspector says he is minded to accept this (para 54) as it is previously developed (brownfield) land, but he states that it is a “sensitive site in landscape terms” and that the policy “should be amended to ensure that the landscape and scenic beauty of the AONB would be conserved.”
Inspector Philip Lewis has given the Council two options in paragraph 63:
1. To pause the Examination and continue to attempt to resolve the issue of the provision of strategic infrastructure, the OAN (objectively assessed housing need), housing requirement and supply, including the Garden Community proposal and provision for Gypsies and Travellers to an agreed timescale along with changes made to the Plan as necessary arising through addressing his soundness comments; or
2. Withdraw the Plan and commence the preparation of a new Plan as per current national planning policy.
We estimate that so far Tandridge District Council has spent more than £2million on its Local Plan.
15 December 2020
Tandridge Local Plan - Inspector’s verdict expected this week
The Planning Inspector's decision on the Tandridge Local Plan is expected to be sent to Tandridge District Council this week. A central part of the Plan is a proposed “Garden Community” of 4,000 houses on Green Belt at South Godstone.
It’s been over a year since the end of the Inspector's Examination with the final hearing session taking place on 28 November last year. Since then, the Inspector has held some additional consultations and has asked the Council some questions.
OLRG has taken part throughout. We have made detailed alternative proposals for rewriting the Plan - and to deliver infrastructure, to correct the Green Belt assessments, and to provide higher numbers of affordable housing.
May 2020
New questions from the Planning Inspector
The Local Plan Inspector is still considering whether or not to approve Tandridge District Council’s Local Plan. Following the rejection by the Government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) of Tandridge District Council’s bid for £57 million to deliver road infrastructure for its proposed South Godstone Garden Community, the Inspector has now sent a letter to the Council asking them a number of questions about viability and deliverability.
To read the Inspector's letter:
click here
The Inspector’s Programme Officer has said: “These are matters that he needs to explore further before he can issue his full post hearings letter which is otherwise substantially complete. The process from this point will be for the Council to respond and we will need to agree the timescale for this in due course. The Inspector will consider that response and decide what needs to be done at that point. That may, or may not include seeking views of other participants.”
Last month, the Council heard that its bid for money to upgrade junction 6 of the M25 and the A264 Felbridge junction with the A22 to facilitate the South Godstone Garden Community, had been rejected. News report on this link:
click here
The South Godstone scheme is the main plank of the Council’s new Local Plan.
February 2020
Local Plan update - Hurst Green sites
An update on the two sites in Hurst Green that have been allocated by Tandridge District Council for housing development in its new Local Plan which is currently being examined by a Planning Inspector.
In response to a new consultation on education by the Inspector, OLRG has submitted more comments about site HSG13 ( Land west of Red Lane, Hurst Green).
These are aimed at addressing the recognised deficit in primary school provision in Hurst Green which the Council's Plan fails to do. Our comments can be read on this link click here
The other site in Hurst Green that has been allocated for housing development is HSG14, Warren Lane Depot. The Council's latest document for this site indicates development will be postponed and that the site will not be developed until 2030/2031 instead of 2021/2022.
We do not yet know when the Inspector will give his decision on the Local Plan.
November 2019
Morrisons car park housing plan/ Infrastructure / Hurst Green Local Plan sites
Concerns about Tandridge District Council's plan for 50 homes to be built on Morrisons car park in Oxted were raised at the Local Plan Examination by OLRG Councillor Claire Blackwell (November 7, Day 6pm). The scheme is currently included in the Council's Policy TLP29 for Oxted Town Centre. The discussion starts at 53.48 on this link click here.
Struggling local infrastructure, in particular, the pressure on Oxted Health Centre, was highlighted to the Local Plan Inspector by OLRG Councillor Catherine Sayer. The Council then set out the difficulties they face in delivering any new services. On this link starting at 41.22 click here.
Earlier in the week (November 5, Day 4 pm) the two housing allocations in Hurst Green were on the agenda - you can watch OLRG's Paul Brown QC talking about the Green Belt and fighting for the provision of a new school and health infrastructure for Hurst Green on this link starting at 14.25 click here.
Week 2 of the hearings, which was postponed by the Planning Inspector because of a family bereavement, has now been rescheduled.
These hearings will begin on Tuesday 26 November when the South Godstone Garden Community of 4,000 homes is due to be discussed. On Wednesday 27 November, the discussion will be about where housing development should go in the District and about the Green Belt.
Appeal for Funds - Tandridge Local Plan Examination
On 8 October, a Planning Inspector begins his 4 week examination of the Plan. OLRG is taking part in the examination hearings. All members of OLRG working on this are doing it for free but we need to raise another £20,000 to pay for legal advice and professional representation.
If you would like to help and are able to make a donation - £100, £50, £25, £10 or anything at all - it will make a big difference in the fight to get the Plan put right.
There are 3 ways to donate:
The Councils Plan targets large areas of the Green Belt despite the fact that this is a mainly rural District with no big towns, few local jobs, and little infrastructure.
OLRG has engaged legal and planning experts to help us take part in the Local Plan process.
We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has already kindly donated money to pay for the experts' input. Thanks also to the hundreds of residents who have copied us their emails and letters to Tandridge District Council expressing their views on the Plan which have been invaluable in making our response.
September 2018
OLRG has submitted its expert opinion response to the consultation on the final version of the Plan. In it, we have made detailed alternative proposals for rewriting the Plan - and to deliver infrastructure, to correct the Green Belt assessments, and to provide higher numbers of affordable housing.
We have also made submissions to the Council's three previous Local Plan consultations. To read these submissions, click on the links in the box at the top of the front page of this website. All our submissions have been drawn up under guidance from legal and planning experts.
On 19 December 2018, the Tandridge Local Plan was approved for submission to the Planning Inspectorate for Examination. The seven Conservative Councillors on the Planning Policy Committee voted it through, the three OLRG/Independents voted against, and the three Liberal Democrats abstained.
The Plan proposes 4,000 houses in a 'garden community' on the Green Belt in South Godstone, release of Green Belt around the main settlements including Hurst Green, and increasing building density putting even greater pressure on infrastructure.
In addition, it has assessed numerous Green Belt sites as "deliverable and developable."
For three years now and right from the start of the Local Plan process, we have made clear the problems with the Council's work. Members have funded expert advice which we have given to the Council at every one of the Local Plan consultations - and in separate QC opinion. We have given the Council every opportunity at every point in the process to put things right but it has not done so.
OLRG has always said that the Council's repeated claims that the Plan is 'infrastructure led' are not supported by the evidence. This is now very clear from the consultation responses to the draft Plan from infrastructure providers such as Surrey County Council and the Local Enterprise Partnership Coast to Capital, with their denials of the Council's claims that they will fund infrastructure provision.
Overwhelmingly, the items listed in the Infrastructure Delivery Plan read as policy objectives, statements of intent, or simply a wish list, rather than as identifiable projects which have a reasonable prospect of being delivered.
The claim that there will be 'thousands of new jobs' is also not supported by the evidence. It seems a wholly unrealistic statement, given the rural nature of the District and the constraint to jobs growth through ever increasing competition from nearby expanding larger population and economic centres.
The Plan fails to maximise opportunities for affordable housing. It has set affordable housing thresholds of just 20% in the built-up areas and 40% elsewhere and for Green Belt sites. And yet the Council's own viability assessments show that higher affordable housing requirements, in some cases considerably higher, could be achieved.
The Green Belt assessments have not been carried out properly and in accordance with national policy.
These are just a few examples of the problems with the Council's Local Plan work.
November 2017
Tandridge District Council has been forced to drop its proposal for a "Garden Village" on land west of Edenbridge after Sevenoaks District Council objected to the scheme.
On 6 October 2017, Sevenoaks District Council wrote to Tandridge stating "the proposal for a Garden Village on Land West of Edenbridge does not form part of SDC's emerging development strategy as outlined in the Issues and Options consultation document and the site offers many constraints that prohibit this scale of development. Therefore, the inclusion of this site within Tandridge's Local Plan is not supported."
On 8 November, Councillor Robert Piper, Sevenoaks District Council's Cabinet Member with responsibility for planning, said: "People in Edenbridge will be relieved to hear Tandridge District Council is no longer pursuing plans to build at least 6,000 new homes on the Green Belt adjoining Edenbridge. We had said all along we did not believe this to be a suitable location for a new village. Our approach is to continue to protect the Green Belt by developing land which is or has been built on or where there are 'exceptional circumstances'. We could never support this proposal to concrete over such a large area of the Green Belt that is valued by Edenbridge residents."
We believe Tandridge District Council should never have included this site in its Garden Villages consultation. There seems absolutely no justification for doing so given that Sevenoaks made clear to Tandridge District Council at a duty to cooperate meeting on 3 May - more than three months before the consultation began - that the site was unlikely to go ahead.
The inclusion of the location, part of which is in the Limpsfield ward of OLRG Councillor Phil Davies, has caused widespread unnecessary worry and distress to residents.
It is one more example of how Tandridge District Council's Local Plan work is wrong which is why OLRG is challenging it and will continue to do so. Experts have made clear that the work is poor quality, not compliant with national planning policy, and generally not fit for purpose.
The Council is still considering three locations for a garden village which are Blindley Heath, South Godstone, and Redhill Aerodrome. However, the Aerodrome could not be delivered within the Local Plan period because it would need a new junction on the M23.
October 2017
To read OLRG's response to Tandridge District Council's third Regulation 18 Local Plan Consultation (Garden Villages) click here
It explains that the Council's Strategy is fundamentally misconceived and contrary to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) because important sustainability factors and constraints that should have been taken into account have been ignored from the very start of the process. It does not reflect the distinctive characteristics of Tandridge or the needs and priorities of residents.
There has already been an exceptionally high amount of building in the District resulting in very large amounts of inward migration from other areas. This has not brought affordable housing for local people - instead, those moving in to the area with higher salaries have pushed up house prices. The vast majority of the Council's housing need figure is for more inward migration and is not to do with meeting local housing need.
The Council has no track record of providing infrastructure and its 'Preferred Strategy' document makes clear that infrastructure can't be guaranteed going forward either. Although the Council recognises that there is an existing infrastructure deficit, the type and availability of existing services and infrastructure provision is understated. The very limited services and infrastructure in this predominantly rural District and the consequent reliance on other districts has not been addressed.
The proposals will exacerbate unsustainable travel patterns and reliance on the car with consequent negative impacts on the environment and on communities within and outside of Tandridge District.
The District is 94% Green Belt and yet the Green Belt has either been ignored or sidelined from the start. The process has not correctly interpreted the NPPF or Planning Practice Guidance with regards to the Green Belt. This incorrect interpretation has been repeatedly used in Council documents published with each of its three Regulation 18 consultations.
This is a small Council, short of funds, and we believe money is the driving force - currently around 20% of its income comes from the New Homes Bonus. The more it builds, the more money it gets.
The Preferred Strategy has never been publicly consulted on. Instead, it was simply agreed by the Conservatives and the 6 Liberal Democrat Councillors on Tandridge District Council. We believe it has no validity in terms of public support. On the contrary, there is widespread opposition to it throughout the District and it does not reflect the results of the Local Plan consultation so far.
OLRG's 2 Councillors and 2 Independents are fighting it.
Last year, the Oxted & Limpsfield Residents Group (OLRG) put up 2 candidates for election to Tandridge District Council. They won with big majorities and big turnouts and one reason was the major public concern about the failings in the Council's Local Plan proposals. Our first candidate, Jackie Wren, defeated the Council leader with a landslide win.
Since then, 2 Conservative Councillors, Liz Lockwood (Lingfield & Crowhurst) and Clive Manley (Portley Ward, Caterham) have gone Independent because of their concerns about the Local Plan and have joined forces with OLRG.
August 2017
Tandridge District Council is currently holding a consultation called the "Local Plan Garden Villages Consultation" but that is only part of the story...
As well as a "Garden Village" of at least 4,000 houses in the Green Belt at either Blindley Heath, South Godstone, Redhill Aerodrome or land between Lingfield and Edenbridge, the Council's Plan would mean building on the Green Belt everywhere else as well.
And that will happen first if the Plan is not stopped because any "Garden Village" would not be ready for 10 - 15 years or more. In the meantime, the Council aims to build 470 homes a year (almost 4 times its current target) and the rest of the Plan, known as the Preferred Strategy, will take effect. That is to:
We urge you to say that you are not in favour of any of the settlement sites because, if you say you are, the Council will take this as support for the principle of massive Green Belt development to accommodate inward migration.
You can submit comments by:
Email localplan@tandridge.gov.uk OR
Letter marked 'Local Plan Consultation' to: Tandridge District Council, Council Offices, 8 Station Road East, Oxted, Surrey, RH8 0BT OR
Using the Council's consultation 'portal' click here.
More points:
1. The proposals exacerbate unsustainable travel patterns and reliance on the car with consequent negative impacts on the environment and on communities within and outside of Tandridge District.
2. Unlike many other local authorities, for years Tandridge District Council has approved large amounts of house-building in the District but without supporting infrastructure. There is already a large infrastructure deficit. The Preferred Strategy makes it clear that infrastructure can't be guaranteed going forward either.
3. The Council has chosen to meet an inflated and unreliable housing need figure, more than 90% of which is for inward migration that has nothing to do with local need. This is NOT required by Government policy - it is the Council's own choice as this recent article from The Times makes clear click here
4. For years there has been an exceptionally high amount of house-building in Tandridge District. Because Tandridge built so much, while other areas were not building enough, the District soaked up unmet housing need from those other areas resulting in a very large amount of inward migration. This has not brought affordable housing for local people - instead, those moving in to the area with higher salaries have pushed up house prices.
5. The Council's Strategy is unsustainable . Expert opinion has made clear that the evidence documents on which it is based are seriously flawed and not compliant with Government Policy. These have still not been corrected.
7. This is a small Council, short of funds, and we believe money is the driving force - currently around 20% of its income comes from the New Homes Bonus. The more it builds, the more money it gets.
8. The Preferred Strategy has never been publicly consulted on. Instead, it was simply agreed on by the Conservatives and the 6 Liberal Democrat Councillors on Tandridge District Council. We believe it has no validity in terms of public support. On the contrary, there is widespread opposition to it throughout the District and it does not reflect the results of the Local Plan consultation so far.
March 2017
Tandridge District Councillors last night agreed a preferred strategy for the Local Plan which confirms the Council wants large scale building on the Tandridge Green Belt including around Oxted, Limpsfield and Hurst Green.
The strategy proposes building on the Green Belt around ALL the Tier 1 and Tier 2 settlements which are: Oxted, Limpsfield, Hurst Green, Caterham on the Hill, Caterham Valley, Warlingham, Whyteleafe, Godstone, Lingfield and Smallfield.
This Green Belt development would be IN ADDITION to a new settlement of around 4,000 homes to be built in the Tandridge Green Belt in one of 5 possible locations which are: Blindley Heath, South Godstone, Redhill Aerodrome, the borders between Lingfield and Edenbridge, and the Chaldon/Coulsdon area.
8 Conservative Councillors and 2 Liberal Democrats on the Planning Policy Committee voted it through. They are:
Cllr Peter Bond (chairman, Burstow, Horne & Outwood); Cllr Keith Jecks (vice-chairman, Woldingham); Cllr Gill Black (Bletchingley & Nutfield); Cllr Chris Botten (Portley, Caterham); Cllr Lindsey Dunbar (Limpsfield); Cllr Ken Harwood (Felbridge); Cllr Alun Jones (Valley, Caterham); Cllr Keith Prew (Warlingham West); Cllr Lesley Steeds (Dormansland & Felcourt); Cllr Debbie Vickers (Bletchingley & Nutfield).
OLRG's Councillor Jackie Wren was the only member of the Committee to vote against.
She said "The Council says that its preferred strategy aims to protect the Green Belt. Please do not be fooled. The details make clear this Council wants to build as much as possible and has no intention whatsoever of protecting the Green Belt.
Please do not make the mistake of believing that the new houses in the Green Belt will be 'affordable' and will be for local residents. These new houses will be sold at the highest possible price that developers can achieve irrespective of whether those purchasers are from Tandridge or anywhere else."
Conservative Councillor for Lingfield and Crowhurst, Liz Lockwood, urged the committee members to vote against the strategy.
She said "By agreeing to this, you are agreeing to the wholesale release of Green Belt sites all around the district.
This document skirts the key issue the whole of the district is shouting about - the current inadequate infrastructure and the consequences of infilling ad infinitum without any consideration of the consequences whatsoever. Flooding, congestion, surgery waiting lists and much much more.
This strategy is completely unsustainable and I would not be able to look any residents in the eye if I voted for it."
The strategy is designed to meet a housing need figure of at least 9,400 houses. As much as 90 per cent of this figure is comprised of people moving to Tandridge from other areas. It doubles the current rate of housing development.
For many years now, there have been very high levels of house-building in Tandridge which has already led to large amounts of inward migration. This huge amount of building has not brought affordable housing for local residents.
The Council has no track record of delivering new infrastructure and the strategy does not address the existing infrastructure deficit.
The strategy is based on documents which experts have made clear are not fit for purpose. It has ignored the fundamental principle of the Government's National Planning Policy Framework which is the achievement of "sustainable development."
The Council has to get its Plan approved by a Planning Inspector at Examination and, to do that, the Plan has to be based on sound planning reasons.
We believe the strategy has nothing to do with planning and everything to do with raising money to try to ensure this cash-strapped Council survives.
Please be assured that OLRG will not stand by and see the Tandridge Green Belt destroyed unjustifiably and unnecessarily.
The preferred strategy is on this link click here
The key paragraph is 5.36 on page 32 which says that Approaches 3 and 6 will be pursued.
Approach 3 specifies development on "sites that are currently in the Green Belt around the urban settlements and semi-rural service settlements."
Approach 6 is "a large urban extension or new settlement."
Paragraph 5.14 sets out Approach 3 in more detail.
January 2017
OLRG has now submitted its second expert opinion response - this time to Tandridge Council's Local Plan Sites Consultation - which again makes clear the Council's proposals are not fit for purpose and do not form the basis for a sound Local Plan. It can be read on this link: click here
In addition to comments on individual site assessments, the key points the experts have made are:
We are most concerned about Tandridge Council's decision to keep open its Sites list for developers/landowners to submit sites for development until December 30 - the same day as its Local Plan Sites Consultation closed.
Inevitably, this has meant a number of sites were submitted too late for people to comment on them, including 3 of the sites put forward for a new settlement.
After persistent requests from OLRG Councillor Jackie Wren, Tandridge Council has now published a list of the extra sites. We felt it was very important to get these sites published as soon as possible so that residents were aware of them.
There are new sites in Hurst Green and Limpsfield together with some new large sites around the District including in Chaldon, Bletchingley, Blindley Heath, Dormansland, Lingfield and Woldingham.
To read the full additional site list click here
The Council says it has not yet assessed these new sites to see if it considers they are suitable for development, but will now be doing so.
We do not understand why the Council did not close the site list for the current Local Plan before going out for consultation. The problem with what has happened is that a third Regulation 18 Consultation is now necessary and - as well as the extra cost at a time when the Council is facing serious financial problems - this has delayed even further the next stage, Regulation 19, and the production of the final Local Plan.
Last June, the Council delayed the Local Plan by a year which meant it missed this year's Government deadline.
The longer the delay with getting a sound Local Plan before the Planning Inspectorate for Examination, the greater the risk of speculative planning applications being submitted by developers on Green Belt sites. This, coupled with the Council's inadequate Green Belt assessments which put the Green Belt at unjustified risk, is a real worry.
We are very anxious that a sound Local Plan is submitted to the Planning Inspectorate as soon as possible.
December 2016
Deadline for comments, December 30. Please take part.
Deadline Friday, December 30 - last few days left to write in, or add more comments, to Tandridge Council's Local Plan Sites Consultation.
To save the local Green Belt from development, send comments to Tandridge Council by email localplan@tandridge.gov.uk or by letter to Planning Policy, Tandridge District Council, Council Offices, 8 Station Road East, Oxted, Surrey, RH8 0BT. Or you can use the Council's consultation portal on this link click here. See 'Local Plan: Sites Consultation'. You will have to register first to be able to take part this way.
Please include:
The Council has graded a large number of Green Belt sites as 'amber' which means they are being considered for new housing development. They include: OXT 006 Chichele field (150 units) and OXT 007 Stoney field (250 units) in Oxted, and OXT 025 Land at Holland Road, Hurst Green (200 units) together with a cluster of nearby sites in Hurst Green.
To read the Council's site list click here
Some Green Belt sites have been graded as 'red' and unsuitable for development. However, these are still marked as 'deliverable and developable' and they are not safe from development. Please also comment on these sites.
You might also want to comment on proposed housing development of non-Green Belt sites like OXT 016 (gasholder) and OXT 065 (Ellice Road car park).
It is useful to read the Council's landscape assessments and ecology assessments for the sites which are the 'LCSS' and 'SBEA' documents on this link: click here
You may want to agree or disagree with, or add to, what has been said.
Additional sites, which have not yet been assessed by the Council but can be commented on, are listed under 'HELAA Appendix 8 - Additional Sites for HELAA 2017.' These include Land south of Springfield, east of Beadles Lane, Old Oxted (120 units) which is located between the Old Oxted Conservation Area and the Broadham Green/Spring Lane Conservation Area and serves an important purpose as a setting for both these areas.
OLRG has once again commissioned legal and planning experts to draw up a response to the Sites Consultation. They will be addressing the inflated housing need figure and also the HELAA 2016 site assessments and Green Belt Assessment Part 2 which do not meet the requirements of Government guidance and omit key evidence.
As well as commenting on the sites, general comments you could make are:
November 4th 2016
November 4 - December 30. Please take part.
Our leaflet about the Sites Consultation and with details about Tandridge District Council's flawed Local Plan proposals is currently being delivered to 5,500 homes in Oxted, Limpsfield and Hurst Green. If it hasn't come through your letterbox yet, it can be read on this link: click here
Experts have made clear the Tandridge Local Plan documents are fundamentally flawed. We believe they should have been corrected before the Sites Consultation was put before the public, but now that the consultation is going ahead, please do take part.
The Council has graded a large number of Green Belt sites as 'amber' which means they are being considered for new housing development. Two applications on these amber Green Belt sites have already been submitted - one in Warlingham and one in Felbridge.
The Council has made no consideration of infrastructure pressures associated with development of these sites nor of the existing infrastructure deficit.
It has used consultants' assessments on capacity for development, landscape impact, and ecology to grade sites. There are many amber sites around Oxted, Limpsfield and Hurst Green.
They include: OXT 006 Chichele field (150 units) and OXT 007 Stoney field (250 units) in Oxted, and OXT 025 Land at Holland Road, Hurst Green (200 units) together with a cluster of nearby sites in Hurst Green.
Please submit comments to the Council about the sites you know, about what the Council and its consultants have said about those sites, and explain where what has been said is inaccurate or incomplete or both. Please repeat any comments about the sites that you made in the first consultation.
Some Green Belt sites have been graded as 'red' and unsuitable for development. However, these Green Belt sites are still marked as 'deliverable and developable' and they are not safe from development. Please also comment on these sites.
To read the Council's site list click here
The Council's assessments are on this link click here
For the Oxted/Limpsfield/Hurst Green landscape assessments of the Green Belt sites see LCSS Oxted North and Oxted South. For the ecology assessments, see SBEA 'Volume 2 Oxted (for other areas see the other LCSS and SBEA documents).
The Council has added another list of sites including one in Old Oxted (120 units) and another one in Hurst Green (200+ units). It is not clear to us how people are expected to comment on them as the Council has given no details. To read the list, click here and on 'HELAA Appendix 8 - Additional Sites for HELAA 2017'.
We have asked the Council's Planning Department for more information and have been told that as the sites have not yet been assessed in any detail or mapped "the Council are unable to determine which of these sites would be 'deliverable or developable' and no information is available."
However, we do have these further details about the location of these 2 sites so please do send in comments on them:
Land south of Springfield, east of Beadles Lane, Old Oxted (120 units): This is located between Springfield and Spring Lane and borders Beadles Lane.
Land at Holland Road, Hurst Green (200+ units): This is on the opposite side of Holland Road to the site marked as OXT 053
Other comments you may wish to make:
To read its consultation response click here
Submit comments to the Council by December 30. To do so, either:
1. Email your comments to localplan@tandridge.gov.uk OR
2. Send a letter marked 'Local Plan Sites Consultation' to: Planning Policy, Tandridge District Council, Council Offices, 8 Station Road East, Oxted, Surrey, RH8 0BT OR
3. Use the Council's consultation 'portal' on this link click here. See 'Local Plan: Sites Consultation'. You will have to register first to be able to take part this way.
The Council has said there will be a copy of its documents in libraries and in reception at the Oxted Council offices which residents without internet access can go in and read.
October 29th 2016
This Monday, eight Councillors on Tandridge Council's Planning Policy Committee will decide if the Council's Local Plan Sites Consultation should be put out for public consultation. One of them is OLRG's Councillor Jackie Wren who will be speaking against because:
1. The Council has graded a large number of Green Belt sites as 'amber' which means these Green Belt sites are still being considered for new housing development. They include thirteen sites around Oxted, Limpsfield and Hurst Green.
In the last few weeks, planning applications for new housing developments have been submitted on two of the 'amber' sites - one in Warlingham and one in Felbridge. We believe all the other amber sites are at risk from planning applications.
2. Some Green Belt sites have been graded 'red.' However, instead of marking these sites as 'unsuitable and unavailable', these Green Belt sites are still marked as 'deliverable and developable' and so we believe that they remain at risk.
The Council has missed the Government's deadline of March 2017 for submitting its new Local Plan. Its delay until at least 2019 for adopting the new Local Plan means that the timeframe for developers to submit these applications on Green Belt sites all over Tandridge has lengthened significantly.
3. The Council has not corrected its flawed 2015 Green Belt assessments which our planning experts have explained seriously weaken protection for the Tandridge Green Belt. Nor has it corrected the inflated housing need figure.
4. The Council has still not made any consideration of either the pressures on existing infrastructure or new infrastructure provision for the sites in the consultation.
The seven other Councillors on the Planning Policy Committee who will decide on Monday evening are: Councillor Peter Bond (chairman), Conservative; Cllr Gill Black, Conservative; Cllr Chris Botten, Liberal Democrat; Cllr Ken Harwood, Conservative; Cllr Keith Jecks, Conservative; Cllr Lesley Steeds, Conservative; Cllr Debbie Vickers, Conservative.
October 22nd 2016
Green Belt sites across Tandridge District have been graded as 'amber' by Tandridge Council in its new Local Plan Sites Consultation.
It means that these sites are being considered for housing development. According to the Council, they would deliver a total of 4022 homes.
Thirteen of them are in Oxted, Limpsfield and Hurst Green - among them Chichele field (150 units) and Stoney field (250 units) in Oxted and Land at Holland Road in Hurst Green (200 units).
The document has just been published on the Council's website. To see details of which Green Belt sites near you have an amber rating click here. The document takes a while to download.
You'll see that despite grading these sites amber, the Council has not made any consideration of infrastructure provision.
The Council has graded some Green Belt sites as 'red'. The Planning Department says red land will not be considered for development but we believe it is not safe because it has already been flagged up as 'deliverable and developable' in the Council's previous consultation and developers can still submit planning applications for these sites.
Rather than protecting the Green Belt, the current approach to the new Local Plan effectively invites developers to put forward planning applications on Green Belt sites. This has just happened with a site in Warlingham where Chartwell Land and New Homes Ltd have applied to build 146 homes in the Green Belt.
The Council has accepted an inflated and flawed housing need figure of 9,400, the vast majority of which is for inward migration from London.
Two areas - one at Blindley Heath and one at South Godstone - are being considered for a new town with at least 2,000 houses.
In addition, sites owned by Tandridge District Council are earmarked to be sold off for new housing development.
These sites include Oxted's Ellice Road car park, which is being considered for new flats; Boulthurst Way recreation ground in Hurst Green, estimated for 35 new units; the Warren Lane Depot in Hurst Green, estimated for 48 new units which, on its own, is expected to generate ?4-5 million for the Council's coffers; Chestnut Copse playing field in Hurst Green where a 3 storey block of 12 units could be built netting the Council ?900,000.
In Caterham, Council owned land including the open space between Yorke Gate and Hambledon Road known as 'the Bellway strip' and the Timber Hill Road Recreation Ground is being earmarked.
Resources Committee Councillors are due to approve these sites for the Local Plan process at their meeting on October 25. To read the details click here. See item 6 and Appendix A for the list of Council owned sites to be included in the first stage of the Plan.
A financial briefing for Councillors was held this week which showed the Council has a predicted shortfall of ?1.4 million in 2017/18.
When discussing the proposed development of the Ellice Road car park, a senior officer stated the Council needed to develop what it could to remain solvent over the next few years.
We believe that the picture is now becoming clear that one of the unwritten objectives of the new Local Plan is to make this small Council financially viable.
Please be assured that OLRG will not stand by and let this cash-strapped local authority destroy our precious Green Belt and open spaces, destroy the character of the area, and put intolerable pressure on our already struggling infrastructure simply to ensure its own survival. Exceptional circumstances are the only basis for changing the Green Belt boundaries and raising money is not one of them.
More details of the Council's Sites Consultation are on its website: click here
Councillors on the Planning Policy Committee will be asked to approve the Sites Consultation at their meeting on October 31. The Consultation is due to take place from November 4 - December 30.
13 OCTOBER 2016
Councillor Phil Head
We are delighted to report that Phil Davies has been elected as Tandridge District Councillor for Limpsfield.
The vote was:
Phil Davies, Oxted & Limpsfield Residents Group: 713
Neil O'Brien, Conservative: 472
Sheelagh Crampton, Liberal Democrat: 33
Simon Charles, Labour: 25
The turnout was 43% which we understand is high for a by-election.
In a statement after the result, Phil said: 'I am overwhelmed by the support and very, very grateful. I really enjoyed meeting everybody during the campaign and the enthusiasm we found while canvassing was an inspiration.
I, and OLRG, will now do our absolute best to represent residents. Thank you so much to everyone who helped to make this happen.
October 10th 2016
Phil Davies and the Oxted and Limpsfield Residents Group have had great support from Limpsfield residents, now is the time to translate this into votes on the day. Every vote counts.
Voting for Phil and OLRG will mean that we, backed by our legal and planning experts, can:
Phil's second election leaflet is now being delivered to all residents of Limpsfield. To read it click here
Voting is at St Peter's Hall in Limpsfield High Street this Thursday, October 13th, from 7am-10pm.
We understand that redevelopment of the gasholder site is once again being promised during canvassing for the by-election. Just to clarify that the gasholder site is owned jointly by National Grid and SGN (Scotia Gas Networks) - not by the Council - and it is those owners who are in control of any redevelopment.
Councillor Wren recently looked into the prospects for redevelopment and was told in an email from the Council's Chief Executive that National Grid has told Tandridge Council it does not want any public sector funding to redevelop the site nor does it want the Council as a joint venture partner in any redevelopment. The email added that the Council has been informed that National Grid are considering a joint venture with Berkeley Homes, operating as St William, to redevelop the site.
It seems clear, therefore, that the timing and the shape of any redevelopment will be controlled solely by National Grid/SGN and the Council's role in the future of the gasholder will be to assess any planning application that may be put forward by National Grid and Berkeley Homes
Thank you so much to everyone who has helped with Phil's campaign. The support and enthusiasm has been incredible.
Please vote for Phil and OLRG on Thursday!
September 16th 2016
We have received a number of queries asking what is happening with the Tandridge Local Plan and so here is the latest that we have:
September 15th: Council officers were due to reply to the Local Plan consultation responses including the expert opinion document which was commissioned by OLRG and supported by 11 of the District's Parish Councils and 7 other Tandridge community groups. However, this was delayed and the Council has set a new date of October 31st for giving its reply.
October 6th: The Council was due to publish a Sites Consultation which we understand will include consultation on proposed areas of the Tandridge Green Belt to be released for new development. But the Council has informed Councillor Wren that is being delayed - because of the Limpsfield by-election - and has given a new date for publication of October 31st.
October 14th: On the day after the by-election result is known, Cllr Wren and other Councillors have been asked to attend a briefing meeting about the Sites Consultation. Cllr Wren has asked for the material in advance in order to prepare for the briefing, but this request has been refused by the Council.
We believe this is an unreasonable way to behave because it gives Councillors no opportunity to make informed comments on material that may have a significant impact on their wards and constituents.
October 24th: Sites Consultation documents due to be published - effectively a consultation on the release of Green Belt land proposed for housing development.
October 31st: Planning Policy Committee meeting at which Councillors will be asked by officers to approve the Sites Consultation on releasing Green Belt for development.
November 4th - December 30th: The period of public consultation.
The Council has also indicated that a reply to the Local Plan consultation responses, including the expert opinion document - all of which were submitted 7 months ago now - will finally be published.
September 8th 2016
We are delighted to announce that Limpsfield resident, Phil Davies, is standing for OLRG at the forthcoming by-election in Limpsfield to be held on October 13th.
To read Phil's first election leaflet click here
The by-election follows the resignation of Tandridge District Councillor, John Pannett, one of the two Limpsfield ward Councillors.
Having Phil as a Councillor will mean we can build on the work that OLRG's Oxted North and Tandridge Councillor, Jackie Wren, has begun to better represent residents and
