Rother Local Plan 2020-2040 (Regulation 18)

Comment

Representation ID: 27393

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

Reference sites allocated in the HEELA.

“Impact on the High Weald AONB. Catsfield is a very attractive and highly desirable place to live within an area designated for landscape beauty. This landscape is of national importance and should be preserved. Green open spaces incorporating trees, natural boundaries, views and both managed and unmanaged open land are intrinsic to the qualities of the AONB. The overdevelopment of these sites and the substantial growth proposed to the village will have an irrevocable impact on the landscape. The sites are not sheltered, screened or visually mitigated. The sites if developed will constitute a fundamental change to the character and appearance of the village and the wider area. The 2014 Core
Strategy makes it a key vision principle that essentially rural areas falling mainly within the High Weald AONB retain their essential character, and the new draft local plan supports this.
There is a strong presumption in the NPPF that areas such as the AONB are important to be protected and should shape the extent and scale of development. The Core Strategy recognises the restriction but states that sustainable growth can happen but should not happen without harming the individual character and amenities. The construction of 35 and 20 dwellings on the respective sites in the HEELA involving the removal of several trees and the encroachment into the setting of listed buildings is a significant impact on the character and (visual) amenities of Catsfield. Development on these sites fails to recognise the strong steer given by policy DEN2 in the current Local Plan which states that development within the High Weald AONB should be small scale an in keeping with the landscape and settlement pattern; major development (greater than 10 homes) will be inappropriate except in exceptional circumstances. The new draft plan also supports this. In determining the site allocations in the Current Local Plan, CAT0001 should not have been entertained at all and both CAT0001 and CAT0016 do not align with the polices in the new draft plan.

Catsfield is a village with a very linear pattern of development with a single row of properties facing onto three or four key streets such as Church Lane/Church Road, Skinners Lane and The Green. There is very little intensification and dense urbanisation. A deeply projecting and very large sites such as CAT0001 and CAT0016 would be beyond the existing urban grain and would be out of character. Furthermore, this incongruous form of development would be highly visible and harmful to the qualities of the AONB by being visible from within the AONB.

Paragraphs 3.63 and 3.63 in the Regulation 18 Commentary set out policy approaches to protect and enhance the High Weald.

Comment

Representation ID: 27394

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

Adding CAT0001 and CAT0016 as suitable site in the draft local plan cannot be acceptable because and development here is contra to the NPPF unless exceptional circumstance and be identified. It sets out that proposals for major development should include an assessment of the need for the development, the potential to meet it outside the protected landscape or in another way and any detrimental effect on the environment, the landscape and recreational opportunities, and the extent to which that could be moderated. The site allocation ignores these principles.

Comment

Representation ID: 27395

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

These risks overdeveloping rural areas

Comment

Representation ID: 27396

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

These risks overdeveloping rural areas

Comment

Representation ID: 27397

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

Focus on small developments in small villages

Comment

Representation ID: 27398

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

Broadly not relevant to rural areas

Comment

Representation ID: 27399

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

Fund the creation of capacity in local services before agreeing sites that will increase housing to a level that exceeds the services capacity

Comment

Representation ID: 27400

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

This is not really relevant to a rural area, it applies more to urban areas. As noted in previous comments 20 minute walking in a rural parish won’t get you to most services.

Comment

Representation ID: 27401

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

The connected communities concept similarly cannot apply.

Comment

Representation ID: 27402

Received: 22/07/2024

Respondent: Catsfield Parish Council

Parishes already manage Village Halls and similar venues as community hubs, so the policy is fine but should not be used to support housing developments.