Today began the 4 day planning appeal by Hallam, of Sheffield, against the decision of the Vale of White Horse District Council to refuse planning permission for 160 homes in a field south of Abingdon-on-Thames.
The QC representing Hallam was well polished in his opening submission. He produced a printed opening brief. It said that 64 of the dwelling (40%) will be affordable. That the council has been unable to demonstrate a five-year supply of housing.
Regarding highways, Hallam have modelled the Drayton Road mini roundabout, and suggest moving the pedestrian crossing to the other side will help accomodate the extra traffic. But the polish did perhaps hide a lack of local knowledge. For example regarding disposal of foul sewage he said that “Servern Trent have no objection to the proposals subject to appropriate conditions.”
The magistrate representing the council had no printed opening submission, and seemed less polished but better briefed on the local traffic situation. He talked about the damage done to the Lime Trees bordering the site. He said we are in a temporary period where there is not a five years supply of housing, and this will be rectified by 2014. He said that the traffic models produced by Hallam did not correspond with reality and that moving the pedestrian crossing was not an option on grounds of safety and convenience. Another effect of this change would be to have traffic backing up along Ock Street into an air quality management area.
So over the next 4 days, 3 expert witnesses will be called by Hallam (for planning, environment, and highways). 4 expert witnesses will be called by the district council (for the same areas).
On Thursday at 10:10 Nicola Blackwood MP speaks as an interested party. More expert witnesses follow her. Then from 16:10 on Thursday more local interested parties will speak.
On Friday morning closing submissions will be made, and the pre conditions decided should the development be allowed.
The final decision is likely to be in August. The Inspector said he had an open mind at the outset. In this case, he will be looking to balance the benefits of more housing against the harm. For him the key issues are: the location being outside a settlement, the traffic, landscape, and the need for housing.
What do they define as affordable housing? Is this rented? We do not have definition of who will manage it?
all the opening statement said was “affordable housing for the benefit of those who are unable to meet their housing needs through the market” so I’m not sure what form it will take. A good question.
Affordable housing would typically be a mixture of for sale and for letting, and different sizes of unit.
The exact mix has to be agreed with the council. But obviously hasnt been in this case, as the council refused the application.
If that’s the mention of the existing Drayton Road mini roundabouts, that’s the ONLY thing that keeps the traffic flowing (albeit slowly)! Put in traffic lights and see the traffic back-up even more, just like it now has at Stratton Way Coxeters which contributed to the Drayton Road queuing.
Why on earth would changing these roundabouts have any impact on the existing horrendous traffic.
affordable housing = free houses for those that don’t deserve it while the rest of us have to inhabit the real world and pay our own way.
but you can’t say no because they are… that word again that’s currenly fashionable…. ‘ vulnerable’ – it think it must be french for workshy.
what i would like to know is every one goes on about drayton road yes i refuse to go that way when taking my girls to st nics and larkmead in the morning but i go st helens its just as bad i have now put my lil one in breakfast club to leave earlier cause if we leave later than 8pm were caught in traffic which ever way we go and some days getting out of lambrick well you could be waiting over 10mins if theres accident on a34 and people divert through if we leave here at 805 you can bet we wont get to skl till after 9 if there is extra transport well ill have to leave even earlier and whats going to happen to skl sittuation theres not enough places in any skl as it is we only have 3 public secondary so thatll make them over stretched think you need tot think about skls and traffic before affordable housing abingdon cant cope with no more people ty
Am I alone in yearning for the occasional Comma ?
Spike S – you are certainly not alone. To that I would add the odd capital letter.
Wow is this text speak?
Lynda – everyone, apart from the developers agrees with your view about the traffic – that is why all 3 Councils, the Highways Agency and lots of community groups are opposing the proposal.
The school situation is a bit less clear – there is a shortage of primary school places in North Abingdon, so children from there are travelling to S.Abingdon schools. I am not sure whether the latter would be full without them? Re secondary schools, last time I heard, all 3 were under-subscribed but I don’t know how that will be affected by a) the requirement for all children to remain in education or training to age 18 and b) the primary school “bulge” moving in to secondary school.
The Inspector made it clear yesterday that that infrastructure issues such as these would be a very important factor in his decision-making. We have to wait and hope..
Rudi – affordable housing is not always “free”. Some of it is available for sale, the rest is rented. It can’t have escaped your attention that there are many many working people who can’t afford to buy a home so need to rent. Yes, there are also some who don’t earn enough to pay the full rent so get help with that – but they don’t all fall into that category. Throughout much of the 20th century council housing was available to rent to low-income families – why should thier grandchildren not have the same opportunity?
Rudi, you can’t be serious. Do you really believe that everyone who can’t afford to pay for their housing deserves to live on the street? . Have youy any idea what the disparity is between rents and low wages? There are many people who work hard, for long hours, who get paid peanuts. Until all employers are forced to pay a living wage to their workforce, and until rents become affordable there will always be good, honest citizens who need help to keep a roof over their heads.
Hester is right, “affordable” housing is not free. None of it is free, and hosuing benefit has been cut so hard that manypeople who don’t desreve it are being pushed into serious poverty.
I have been told, (and I do not know how true it is), that Sovereign Vale who manage the social housing stock in Abingdon are receiving payments to house immigrant overspill from other areas including London. There is a lebanese family, a Nigerian family and a Pakistani family near me in South Abingdon. Non of these countries are in the E U. They should be made to say how many of their houses go to local people. Surgeries in Abingdon have to make provision for non English speakers.
I have a meeting with the Vale Council’s Director of Housing next week so I will ask if there is any truth in this. It has always been the rule that local people in need get priority and those in the greatest need go to the top of the list.
There has to be a very good reason for anyone without a local connection to be accepted onto the waiting list, for instance if you and your children were fleeing domestic violence. If there is any truth in what you say, Janet, there may be a very sound, humane reason for it.
Anyone know why the Cross Keys is closed ‘until further notice’ ?
Can anyone go to the meeting tomorrow ?
Yes it is a Public Enquiry and a small number of local people have been there for the full 2 days so far and others have come for various periods of time. It will begin tomorrow morning as it did yesterday and today at 10am
What would help traffic enormously is stopping the whole town moving north at the start of the school day then south again at 3pm. If everyone went to their closest school and supported the team running it many things would be different.
When I came to Abingdon ten years ago I could not believe the sneers I received on announcing them my children when to Thomas Reade. My logic at the time was that I would have to walk past that school to get to any other so why wouldn’t I take my children there and save my time and theirs?
Perhaps I am a bit odd though as I was also very happy to send my children to the nearest school in Blackbird Leys when I lived there too.
As a child I walked almost two miles to a school with a very wide catchment area because it was a Catholic primary school. As a result I had very few friends that I could visit easily and the children who were my neighbours all went to the school on the corner and were home ages before me and able to play together easily.
I know that people get really twitchy when you start talking about the best and worst schools in Abingdon but really it does need to be talked about as this is a major cause of traffic congestion and must also be affecting children’s relationships with their local communities if they spend more time in cars than they do playing or spending time in their own street being seen and seeing who lives there.
It seems that ‘local” is the buzz word about businesses and services but not about schools. Perhaps it’s time to change that.
Rachel – I happen to agree with you that it is generally better for a number of reasons if people send their children to their local school.
Saying that, I believe that the number of journeys created by parents taking their children to state schools further away is a relatively small number compared to the overall traffic situation.
It is the case that traffic levels drop a lot during school holidays, but most of that is because many parents go on holiday and don’t drive to work as a result, rather than the reduction in ‘school run’ journeys.
It is true that too many people do drive their children when they could walk them to school though.
I’m afraid I disagree with the ” majority of parents going on holiday” theory. I’ve been pulling out from Mill Road onto the Drayton for over 12 years to travel to Witney area and the difference on a non school day is quite remarkable.
Fully agree spike – the school traffic has a massive impact on traffic situation in abingdon. Not just regarding parents living in aningdon but also childeen from outside abingdon travelling in, particularly to tge independent schools which draw students from a wide catchment.
An interesting experiment would be to vary school start times and calibrate the impact on traffic.
Iain & Spike – my point was specifically about parents taking their children to state schools further away, in response to Rachel’s point. I completely agree about private school generated traffic.
But the point remains – the drop in traffic in school holidays isn’t just caused by parents not driving their children to school, but also by the fact that they are not driving themselves to work.
A significant proportion of families go away during school holidays. A lot of people must have much higher amounts of annual leave than I get!
I think we’re all operating in the realm of speculation and guesswork here Neil.
I’d find it ibterestibg to explore the impact on traffic of starting the school day later though. There’s a good deal of talk in tge media that there are educational benefits for teenagers starting their work day later, although i guess this would not have such a big impact on traffic as by tgat age they are generally getting themselves to school under their own steam.
Over a dozen local people were at the enquiry when I looked in this morning Thursday. Some of them are there all the time. The traffic expert for Hallams was inaudible so I came away. But did hear Nichola Blackwood saying she had voted for the NPPF (National Planning Policy Framework) which allows such appeals, and so does not oppose planning applications lightly, but in this case the misery caused to her constituents by additional traffic does not justify housing when the draft local plan says new housing should be go in Grove and Wantage.
I did stay and turned the wick up on my hearing aid.
Did I learn anything, well I would now add to the phrase
‘Lies, damn lies and statistics’ – Modeling !
These people and the inspector need to get down to Drayton Road and experience our daily problems for themselves.
Well said Byker-rode
The County Council seems unable to maintain the highways with the current level of traffic. Should the planning appeal be upheld and the development go ahead, what money is going to be spent on the atrocious roads and the lack of proper facilities for cyclists?
I don’t really expect an answer, of course….
This may sound like a ridiculous idea, but taking on your thoughts about traffic and such why not put on more coaches/buses for school pupils.
I know for one that next week when the kids are off school Drayton road will have a low volume of traffic.
However if more coaches/buses were put on to pick children up from surrounding areas such as Steventon and Drayton and so on, surely this would cut the traffic having one large vehicle carrying 30+ children compared to one vehicle carrying one child along with cutting the carbon emissions.
I also think there should be cycling courses, helping children who have not had the chance to learn to cycle to do so, helping them to realise cycling is much more healthier and environmentally friendly than getting a parent to “drop” them off. Get more people cycling to school/ work if they have a short distance.
Sorry if my comment is completely off topic, i just feel it could be a big help.
Attended the meeting from 4.00 p.m. today. Have great admiration for Neil Fawcett, Anne Dodd, Janet Moran and others, who all spoke brilliantly about some of the major concerns with this proposed housing development. The lack of microphones has been annoying, though, to say the least.
I also haven’t heard much being said about the flooding problems near the site. Perhaps I just haven’t been there at the right time!
Here here Cathy, excellent presentations by everyone in the late afternoon session. As was Nichola Blackwoods this morning. Just a pity we were not permitted to show our appreciation at the time.
I think Nichola did touch on flooding and sewage issues.
It should be interesting to see how far the traffic backs up along the Drayton road on Friday when the roads in the centre of town are closed. It would be an ideal time for a site visit !
Pity the appeal was not held in a marquee alongside the Drayton road.
Just like to say that I used to cycle down the Drayton Road to work on the business park behind Abingdon Hospital and you can use the ‘parallel’ roads until you come to the Mill Road area. If traffic is queued, it is not possible to cycle down the inside of the traffic (and the road surface, drains etc. are awful anyway), Similarly, the road is too narrow to cycle down the outside of the traffic without being knocked off your bike by traffic coming the other way. I certainly wouldn’t encourage children to try it whatever course they had been on. Have to own up to having been cautioned twice by the police for cycling on the pavement! Back in the car now sadly.