Chartland have submitted a planning application for 10 dwellings on land adjacent to the Manor Farm complex, north of the old Rectory Gardens.
I have asked for this application to be considered by the North Planning committee for the following reasons:
Out of keeping with the Conservation Area:
Specifically, a detrimental impact on the setting of the conservation area, the Manor Farm Complex, the church and the scheduled monument.
The contemporary designs of Plots 4 & 5, in particular, aren’t reflective of the buildings in the conservation area or the wider area of West Felton. Whilst no doubt high quality and appropriate for any organic farm extension, this manorial farmstead isn’t any farm. Viewed from the viewpoint on the bridleway the materials of plots 4 & 5 will be a stark contrast to backdrop of the manorial farm complex behind the development. No amount of landscaping can offset that. Appreciate the designer has worked hard to show the other plots match the design of the rest of the old part of the village. However, that diligence seems absent for plots 4 & 5. While accepting those buildings would work on a development in a general farm setting, I remain unconvinced they represent organic growth of a farmstead in this specific setting. There isn’t anything similar nearby or in the wider area so it is doubtful that any organic growth here would have looked like these two dwellings.
Massing and development pattern:
Massing of the design is a concern as it doesn’t reflect the context of the wider manorial complex. Previous applications in this area have been turned down because of the negative impact on this part of the village. The background papers in the Conservation Area consultation documents went to great lengths to explain the context of the older part of the village and the village as a whole. To date the enclosures in the old village defined by roads of medieval origin have been infilled at Rectory Gardens and The Court. There has been no development so far which breaks out from the perimeter or arterial feeder roads to create new a cul-de-sac. Development has either followed the arterial roads linearly or with infilled confined to those enclosures. This farmstead style development will break that. To date there is little to no evidence that this site is within a wider bailey enclosure which remains conjecture. The 1771 Craven Estates map shows the Manorial buildings occupying a potential bailey with no ditch, surrounded by field 3 on three sides, and a probable church bailey to the southeast. The application proposes to develop the eastern end of field 3. The northwestern boundary of field 3 shows an antient boundary that has subsequently been grubbed out and realigned a number of times. For the conservation area consultation, I used my professional skill as a land surveyor, using best practice when assessing boundary disputes, to overlay rectified and aligned regression maps. The animation of which is here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/14uXCjNRUGchwMX_uZP_-WKngCTlQ4JGz/view
Throughout the mass of the Manor complex relative to field 3 has remained constant. If field 3 is part of a potential larger bailey or manorial enclosure, then development of this area does threaten the setting of the manorial complex and the scheduled site. The existing barns represent the furthest extreme of the manorial complex. Breaking into field 3 will shift the centre of gravity and the mass of the manorial complex significantly, unlocking an undesirable shift if the settlement pattern of the old part of the village.
A better design might echo the organic settlement pattern of the rest of the old village, i.e., linear in nature and parallel to the alignment of the road frontage.
Open land to the rear:
The suggested open land to the rear looks like 2 plots have been removed to make the design more acceptable. The area with tree symbols looks like a driveway in waiting. I am concerned that all 3 elements could come forward again at a later date for infilling, exposing field 3 on the 1771 Craven map to further harmful development. Should development be accepted here it will be critical to have a boundary that represents an unbreakable edge that prevents further development in the future into field 3, which should have a better level of screening.
Widened Road
I have some reservations over the widening of the road to make the access. The nature of the lanes and widths are all an important part of the character and setting of the old village. Widening this lane will open up the sight lines for vehicles diminishing the visual keys for one of the old Outgangs, altering the character of this part of the village.
To Bailey or not to Bailey
Is Field 3 on the Craven map a bailey or not? This needs testing before any development can commence. I would prefer this to be established before an application was submitted. Whilst an archaeological watching brief is fairly normal on sites like this it is important that this field is fully understood before any permission is granted. Trying to put a lid on the site after commencement through condition wouldn’t be acceptable.
Sustainability
West Felton under SamDev is Open Countryside. Under the now withdrawn local plan is barely qualified as a community hub. Since that date much of the facilities that contributed to that status no longer apply. Under the same sustainability assessment it now wouldn’t be a community hub. The school has expanded but remains full. Within the village this is one of the least sustainable locations for development. SuDs could be much better to obviate the need to manage run-off through better porous materials choices. Soakaways elsewhere in the village have been compromised through poor management and the resulting run-off contributing to significant localised flooding where existing drainage diameters are now significantly under sized. It is important that all development is considered in the wider catchment context as cumulative impacts of higher development numbers will exacerbate the downstream flooding if run-off isn’t fully managed at source and flow rates are significantly slowed.
