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ID sylw: 106493

Derbyniwyd: 05/03/2025

Ymatebydd: Mrs Penelope Esslemont

Objection to Hockley Heath SG24

I have been a resident in the Village of Hockley Heath for 45 years and I am writing to oppose the development SG24. The Solihull Plan states that Hockley Heath is only suitable for small scale development whereas the current development proposal for SG24 is not a small-scale development and in its current format will only have a negative impact on the Village.

The proposed level of development would not only destroy existing green belt, which is supposed to preserve open countryside, the current SG24 plan would also destroy existing wildlife and affect biodiversity, which contravene national sustainability policies. There will also be an increase in traffic, causing not only congestion but also harmful pollutants in the environment, such as noise pollution and air pollution, which will affect the quality of life of the existing residents of the Village. Many of the roads, which will be affected in the plan are single lane with no pedestrian access, which could cause a danger to pedestrians from new developments, these roads are also heavily used by farm traffic, which with an increase in the amount of cars on the road would cause more congestion.

I also have a huge concern about flooding, as Hockley Heath currently floods during heavy rainfall and with existing development to the scale that SG24 outlines, there would be a huge risk to an increase in flooding in the area. Some of the developments on the SG24 plan are also on waterlogged land, which are unsuitable for residential development.

Public services for this scale of development are also currently not in existence in Hockley Heath. The local primary School is oversubscribed with children, and at various times of the day, outside the School, there is a lot of congestion. There is no mention in the plan how there will be an improved School provision for the Village. With the scale of the proposed development there is also going to be a huge increase for the need for doctors, dentists and hospitals, which at the moment Hockley Heath is already struggling with, and this will fall to Solihull Council, who have already stated that they can only accommodate a small-scale development.

I do not agree with the SG24 plan in its current format and even though Hockley Heath has some facilities where it can accommodate a small increase in its population, the current SG24 plan would be detrimental to Hockley Heath’s character, environment, infrastructure and the quality of life of its existing residents. There also needs to be exceptional circumstances for Green Belt release and the SWLP SG24 has not quantified viable alternatives and lacks infrastructure planning for sustainable development.