NPPF - Be afraid, be very afraid!

[Dollybean]

I haven't been around the forum much in the last few months, and hopefully if you have time to read this you'll understand why. It's difficult to keep it brief, but I'll try to stick to the relevant points (although there's reams of the stuff). Unless you live on common land or a National Park, this affects you all. Not sure where to post, so Mods please move if appropriate, and apologies in advance for the length.

The NPPF (National Planning Policy Framework) came into effect in March 2012. The Rt Hon Greg Clark MP (Minister for Planning) states in his introduction to the NPPF that:

"In part, people have been put off from getting involved because planning policy itself has become so elaborate and forbidding - the preserve of specialists, rather than people in communities.

This National Planning Policy Framework changes that. By replacing over a thousand pages of national policy with around fifty, written simply and clearly, we are allowing people and communities back into planning."

The NPPF champions sustainable development, support of communities, seeks to enhance the environment and simplifies the planning process to ensure people have a stake in the future of the places they live and work in, now and for future generations.

How many millions of £'s of taxpayers' money was spent on this? I would like to know because Harrier Developments have submitted a planning application in our rural market town of Soham (yes, THAT Soham) that tears up the NPPF and throws it in the bin.

The Soham Town Masterplan was adopted on May 25th 2010 and cost the taxpayer £50k (so is not even 2 years old). This was a fully consulted and well researched plan and vision for the future of Soham in terms of retail, housing, schooling and employment.

The Masterplan notes that a further area of 550sq metres of retail space is needed. Our local Budgens was granted full planning permission for 468sq metres of this allocation earlier this year. As a well respected and community minded independant in the town, they already allocate community space in their store and were going to expand this. This would involve an investment of over £1m - Harrier Development's application has put those plans on hold, tears up the Town Masterplan and throws that in the bin along with the NPPF.

Land on the Masterplan marked as "New Park" is a small piece of greenbelt land that separates long established homes from a small development of commercial units and the town bypass. It is clearly marked on the Masterplan as being outside of the development envelope.

The land also sits on a grade 2 aquifer that feeds rainwater to local rivers and water reserves. It is prone to localised flooding which does not affect the residential areas (yet!), but does affect 1 of the commerical units who have installed flood barriers at their own expense since more commerical units were built behind it some years ago. The land is also a haven for wildlife including several red light species and has remained undeveloped and uncultivated since Saxon times.

Harrier Developments (or Jack the Lad Spivs as described by the Ely Standard Editor @johnelworthy - worth following as he holds no prisoners) would like to rip this land to shreds and cover it in concrete to provide the poor, under privileged people of Soham with a 41,000 sq foot superstore, pub and petrol station.

The pub is the developer's response to the community's desire for "more community spaces" noted in the Masterplan (and would have been provided by the Budgen's development). My did we get that wrong - what we really need is another pub! You also cannot sink petrol storage tanks below the water table, so not sure how a petrol station works either?

We are so deprived of supermarkets in this area that Harrier Developments have obviously taken pity on us - in Ely (4 miles) there's a Tesco hypermarket (that wants to expand), a Waitrose superstore propping up the City centre and a newly opened Sainsburys superstore that's apparently not doing too well. Aldi also have planning permission in Ely but have yet to act.

In Newmarket (6 miles in the other direction) there are 3 more superstores - Tesco, Waitrose and Asda. Tesco are again looking to expand, Sainsbury's are looking to build a 75,000 sq ft hypermarket (on playing fields bequeathed to the people of Newmarket) and Morrisons are also looking to gain a foothold.

As you can see, the paucity of food choices in the area is diabolical. Aside from the obvious lack of choice already provided by the superstores, we already have a Co-op and the aforementioned Budgens in the town centre as well as many independant shops. Soham is bucking the national trend on high street vacancies with a vacancy rate of less than 3% - but Harrier Developments obviously feel that we could benefit more from having a mammoth superstore development which coincidentally doesn't tick a single box of the NPPF.

And all this right next door to a new primary school that is desparately needed and about to be built. Current traffic movements approx 1600 per day will increase to well over 7000 (that's the developer's own estimate, so will be on the conservative side). But they state the local infrastructure can cope with this and not only will it not create more pollution (air, light, noise or water) but it will help "reduce the carbon footprint". Am I allowed to swear? I would really like to.

Our Town Council Planning Committee supported the application, despite publically admitting that they did not understand the plans. The Vice Chairman of Soham Town Council has resigned her post due to her and her husband's involvement in a Facebook deception campaign which has been exposed in the local press. Despite also telling a member of the public to "shut up" at the Council AGM, somehow she has remained on the planning committee and the flawed decision to support the application still stands.

There has been no democratic process in any of this (we found out about it from a notice on a lamp post - that's all the developers are legally required to do). The only people who stand to benefit are the developers and the land owner who stands to make millions (and is employing dubious practices to get his way). The District Council look set to approve as they will benefit from section 106 money - but I doubt Soham will see any of this.

There is another big expose being published in the Ely Standard today (e-edition takes a few hours to catch up - http://www.elystandard.co.uk/news/soham-news).

 

[vvaannmmaann]

Yeah,but what can you do?

 

[Dollybean]

vvaannmmaann, your comment is appreciated and life would be so much easier (for now) just to sit back and doing nothing. But I couldn't live with myself if I did that (and as mentioned, the above is only the tip of the iceberg) - raising awareness is one of the things we can do, both locally and nationally. If this application is approved, it sets a very disturbing precedent that trashes the NPPF (which is supposed to protect communities from this very thing). Just trying to do my bit while still feeling overwhelmed.

 

[vvaannmmaann]

You may find some ideas here!
http://www.tescopoly.org/

 

[Esk247]

Tesco can do whatever they want to do. They can eat your children at lunch time if they so wish

However, the Whitby lot managed to give Tesco a kick. Tesco had managed to persuade the Nuns (yes really) to sell farm land to fund a hospital for the elderly, in return the other half of the land would be developed in to an Environmentally, and Sympathetically Designed, Naturally Augmented and Sustainable, Growth and Re-Alignment Centre..a supermarket!

Not just ANY supermarket. A Tesco supermarket that was to be built within metres of a massive Lidl store AND a Spar shop AND several other smaller food outlets. Tesco where rubbing their hands with glee until....

The 'NIMBYS' as they are called locally whenever you complain about someone building an aircraft carrier on your lawn, managed to chuck Tesco out and opted for a Sainsburys instead.

http://www.sainsburys-whitby.co.uk

This store is being built on land that is nearly 2 miles away from any competition in an area that doesn't have any alternative food shops. That's more like it! They are also going to solve the issue with lack of late night petrol stations..24 hours..at last!!!

 

[quikshop]

How many millions of £'s of taxpayers' money was spent on this?

The phrase "taxpayers' money" is utterly meaningless and highlights a lack of genuine argument or an attempt at populist outrage.

There is no such thing as taxpayers' money; the money collected by our Government through tax becomes the Governments' money.

Us humble taxpayers have no direct say over how it is spent, and not a huge amount of indirect influence.

The Soham Town Masterplan that was adopted on May 25th 2010 did not cost us the taxpayer a single penny above what we would ordinarily pay in taxes.

 

[Dollybean]

Thanks vvaannmmaann for posting the Tescopoly link - it's certainly a good resource. There is no supermarket behind this (yet) so far as we're aware or can get anybody to admit.

I've read about Whitby Esk247, although I'm not familiar with the whole story so I'll read up on that.

I appreciate your comments quickshop. Fair play, I may not have used the phrase "tax payers' money" in a way that shows I fully understand the complexities of our tax system. But I don't see how that invalidates my opinion that tax payers' money has been wasted if the NPPF is shown to be toothless.

I do appreciate the opportunity to share what's happening on UKBF, hopefully it may be of interest.

 

[quikshop]

But I don't see how that invalidates my opinion that tax payers' money has been wasted if the NPPF is shown to be toothless.

I think you're post is a very good one about an important subject but it's a pet hate of mine when anyone (particularly politicians) talk about tax payers money being wasted.

That phrase is an oxymoron designed to avoid talking about actual fact and symbolise populous outrage. You can almost see the flaming sticks and pitch-forks raised to the cries of "they're wasting our money! Get them!!".

Please keep posting about this, you'll get a lot of less grumpy posts from others

 

[Dollybean]

No problem quickshop - it's one of many irritations in what is turning into quite an epic drama. If the corrupt and greedy get their way, then I'll get my pitchfork out, but I understand what you're saying.

The facts are as stated although obviously it's also an emotive issue. It's quite extraordinary how reckless some of the movers and shakers behind this have behaved (and continue to behave); each day that passes, another bit of the puzzle comes to light - the local paper can barely keep up! I've certainly never come across anything quite like it in all the reading and research we've been doing.

Hopefully it won't have to get to the point where you see me on the news, chained to a tree with a placard, but I'm more than happy to post updates.

 

There is no such thing as taxpayers' money; the money collected by our Government through tax becomes the Governments' money.
.

Are you trying to suggest that the government is incapable of earning a living.


Your logic has a slight pin hole in it.

 

[tree568]

.....
But none of the objectors has any problem with development - just not THIS!! I love my wee home and only ever intended to leave when I'm carried out in my box, so the property value argument holds no weight in my objection. I shop in my town centre (I refuse to use supermarkets) and do not wish to see it destroyed (which the evidence shows time and time again will happen).

We are doing the best we can to get this stopped and all the above is just the tip of the iceberg - we feel so helpless. I will close there, save to say if this application is approved (even for landbanking purposes) it gives greedy developers and speculators a precedent to ignore ALL Town Masterplans and the NPPF.

.....

But you're not helpless. The solution for the residents lies in your post. Even if a supermarket is built, you don't need to shop there. You think that's not a huge incentive for a supermarket NOT to set up shop? For sure it is! Supermarkets can't afford to be where they are not wanted. And certainly not the likes of Asda and Tesco, already being deserted in favour of Sainsburys and Morrisons, because of their use of slave labour, via unpaid internships which rarely lead to a permanent job.

I can kind of understand the council wanting the devlopment to go ahead because wildlife, presumably the current occupiers of the land, unlike supermarkets, don't pay rates. I just don't see why a supermarket would want to go to the expense of setting up in a town that only has around 10,000 residents, all of whom are just a few miles away from any number of large supermarkets. is it really so hard to get good public transport from Soham to somewhere like Ely or Newmarket?

Soham is built on reclaimed fens. The council, imho, should be holding onto any undeveloped green land they have got - they need it to soak up the rain. Droughts don't last forever. When are our councils going to get the message that the best flood defence for a flood plain is NOT TO BUILD ON IT!?