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ID sylw: 108895

Derbyniwyd: 07/03/2025

Ymatebydd: Warwickshire County Council

Minerals and Waste

No objections on mineral sterilisation grounds subject to the exclusion of the land between Ladbroke Road/Railway line and B4451 and subject to:
• Minerals Assessment Report (for assessing the possible impact on mineral resources and determining whether prior extraction is achievable),
• Materials Management Report (for assessing the sourcing and use of construction materials including the availability of on-site materials for reuse/recycling),
• Waste Site Assessment (for assessing the extent to which an existing waste site/use/operation would be prejudiced) (Bishops Bowl, Folly Fields Farm)
• Site Waste Management Plan (a plan for reusing/recycling waste on site and avoiding off-site disposal to landfill),
• Soil Management Plan (a plan to manage all soils on site during construction)


Active Travel

The National Cycle Route 48 previously ran between Bishop’s Itchington and Southam, however traffic growth on the B4451 led Sustrans to withdraw the route along this section of road so it currently stops at the junction of Harbury Road and the B4451. HS2 Ltd is in the process of constructing a new cycle route adjacent to the A423 between Ladbroke and Southam. Once delivered NCR48 is expected to be reinstated following the low trafficked Harbury Road/Church Road to Ladbroke and the new route on the A423 to Southam.

The Warwickshire Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan includes an aspiration to deliver a route between Southam and Long Itchington, however feasibility of such a route is yet to be confirmed. If it is possible to deliver this route it will support a connection between the site and the Lias Line which is being upgraded in phases by its owner Sustrans to provide a continuous off-road route between Leamington Spa and Rugby.

The National Cycling Route 48 between Bishop’s Itchington and Ladbroke which currently follows a low trafficked road would need to be protected or an alternative off road route provided. The route on the A423 between Ladbroke and Southam is a minimum standard shared use facility and as such has limited capacity.
Consideration would need to be given to upgrading this route to accommodate the additional demands the site would create and to create a more appealing route for cycling trips. A new off road or protected low trafficked route would be required through Southam and a new off route road would be needed between Southam and Long Itchington in order to connect with the Lias Line and provide continuous routes to Leamington Spa and Rugby.

Consideration would need to be given to maintaining a high quality route between Long Itchington and Ladbroke, part of which would run through the site. This would need to include ensuring any remaining on-road sections are not negatively impacted by increased traffic flows associated with development. The section following the A423 is unlikely to be an attractive route for cycling due to the volume, speed and nature of traffic using the road, and unless this section can be improved this is likely to limit the number of people who would cycle to Southam (approx. 4km).

It is yet to be confirmed whether a route can be delivered between Southam and Long Itchington, however a route is likely to require third party land. If this could be provided it would enable a largely continuous route between the site and Leamington Spa and Rugby to be created, however at greater than 15km these distances are too far for all but the most committed and fit cyclists to regularly cycle to access employment and services.

Rail

The site currently has reasonable proximity to the rail network, with the nearest station being located at Leamington Spa some 8 miles away. Train services are principally provided by Chiltern Railways, with a half-hourly frequency in each direction between London Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street/Snow Hill, with some services extended to/from Stourbridge Junction in the peaks. Arriva Cross Country services also use the line with an hourly service between Manchester and Bournemouth and a less frequent Newcastle/York to Reading service (these have been recently reintroduced following the post-Covid recovery of rail demand).

The main issue on the rail network in this area is the lack of any substantial capacity to increase service frequencies beyond their current level. The corridor is heavily used for freight, most notably intermodal services to/from the deep sea ports at Southampton.

A new station in the vicinity of where the railway line passes under the B4451/B4452 would be required to serve the new settlement, although it should be noted that the railway at this point is in a substantial cutting east of Harbury Tunnel until it reaches Bishop’s Itchington. This may have engineering and cost implications for the construction of a station.

Current journey times between Leamington Spa and Banbury for Chiltern and Cross Country passenger services is around 16-17 minutes. A key issue will be whether either operator would want to make an additional call at a station to serve the new settlement, for example Chiltern who may have already made three calls in this area (Warwick Parkway/Warwick/Leamington Spa). Issues around abstraction from Leamington Spa and Banbury would need to be explored as part of demand forecasting, along with the extent to which a new station in this area would support wider access to rail objectives from local communities such as Harbury, Bishop’s Itchington, Gaydon/Lighthorne Heath and Southam.

Given capacity constraints on this section of line it is envisaged that a new station would need to be served by existing train services. Adding a stop into a timetable will not only extend the overall journey time by several minutes, but it can also have wider implications for how the service interacts with other key parts of the network such as the timing at Aynho Junction south of Banbury and locations including Reading and Didcot where pathing points in relation to other services will be critical. These issues will need to be explored with the Train Operating Companies (TOCs) and Network Rail.

The typical cost of a new rail station is around £30-35m (based on the estimated cost of Rugby Parkway), although this may be higher for the location in question due to the engineering challenges noted above. Given the potential wider benefits of a new station to local communities in the area who do not currently have direct access to rail there may be a case to bid for public monies to part fund the station.

Chiltern Railways and Arriva Cross Country have been contacted to ascertain whether they would be interested in calling at a new station between Leamington Spa and Banbury, given that it forms part of a number of the options for a new settlement in South Warwickshire. In responding, Arriva Cross Country confirmed that their focus is on providing fast Inter City services and that longer distance passengers are their priority. Given the likely destinations of new passengers being Leamington Spa, Birmingham and London, they believe that Chiltern Railways would provide a better fit for the generated trips from the new settlement (possibly as part of a new hourly Birmingham to Oxford service which is currently under consideration). They confirmed that an assessment would be needed to understand the impact of any new station on capacity between Leamington Spa and Aynho Junction, including the performance and reliability of their reintroduced services between Reading and Newcastle (via Solihull). Unfortunately, no response has been received from Chiltern Railways.

Bus

There are no inter-urban bus routes which pass near or through the site. Local bus services provide access to Harbury, Bishop’s Itchington and Southam.

It is proposed to serve the site with a new, frequent bus service to Leamington Spa and Warwick. Opportunities to reconfigure the existing 665 service from Napton-on- the-Hill to Leamington Spa should be explored to deliver the new service, including consideration of extending the route to Banbury and incorporating JLR near Gaydon. This will require discussion/agreement with Warwickshire County Council as the current 665 service is fully subsidised.

Provision of high quality bus stops with shelters, Real Time Information and raised kerbs, along with bus priority measures at key junctions on the route of the proposed inter-urban service and within the new settlement should be provided.

The proposed inter-urban bus service and associated infrastructure improvements should be deliverable, affordable and viable in the long term if planned and promoted properly.

Highway (Strategic)

The site is reasonable well-located in relation to the SRN in terms of proximity to M40 Junctions 12 with access via the B4451/B4452.

M40 Junction 12 was upgraded around 2015/16 to address queuing on the mainline motorway because of vehicles exiting to access the major employment areas at Gaydon (Jaguar Land Rover and Aston Martin Lagonda). This included the construction of a new dual-carriageway link from the junction towards the B4100.
The scheme has been successful in achieving its aims.

Previous modelling of major growth around M40 Junction 12 has highlighted the need for changes to be made to the slip-road arrangements. This should be reassessed if this option were to go forward for more detailed assessment. Traffic modelling should also be undertaken to identify if M40 Junctions 13-15 require a contribution towards an improvement, particularly when considered in conjunction with the wider SWLP Spatial Strategy.

The timely involvement of National Highways in the assessment process should ensure they are able to help scope the traffic modelling and ensure the understanding of the analysis of its outputs. Initial discussions have taken place with National Highways regarding the principle of a new single junction to potentially amalgamate M40 Junctions 13 and 14.

Improvements to any of the M40 junctions may have deliverability or affordability issues depending on their scale and the need for third-party (non-highway) land. It is assumed the costs of amalgamating M40 Junctions 13 and 14 will be met in full as a result of other development.

Highway (Local)

The site is well related to the LRN particularly in terms of the A423 which links Coventry with Banbury (and links to Rugby and Daventry from Southam) and the A425 which links Warwick and Leamington Spa with Southam, Daventry and Northampton. The B4455/A429 Fosse Way which is a long-distance cross country route linking Leicester with Cirencester is also in relative proximity to the site. There are several other ‘B’ roads in the area which provide links to local villages such as Harbury (B4451/B4452), Bishop’s Itchington (B4451/B4452) and Gaydon/Lighthorne Heath (B4451/B4100) and some significant ‘C’ roads such as Welsh Road between Cubbington and Southam.

The A423 was a trunk route prior to the opening of the M40 in the early 1990’s, which includes bypasses of both Southam and Ladbroke. The route has some spare capacity due to its downgraded status, although there are capacity constraints in and around Southam. Previous Local Plan Strategic Transport Assessment work has highlighted issues on the A425 going into Leamington Spa and within the town centre (including the Bath Street area) as a result of growth to the east of the town.

There are issues with rat-running (particularly to/from JLR at Gaydon) and speeding traffic on the local ‘B’ road network with several junctions having poor casualty records. The Fosse Way is used locally as an eastern bypass of Warwick and Leamington Spa, which has implications for traffic exiting from or entering side roads. The Harbury Crossroads near Chesterton has recently been signalised to address these issues as well as impacts from growth in South Leamington.

The County Council is currently in the early stages of developing a Route Treatment scheme for the Fosse Way, which will aim to implement interventions designed to address speeding traffic concerns with a focus on enhancing road safety for all users, including young and new drivers.

A targeted package of improvements to the A423 around Southam and on the A425, B4455 and other key ‘B’ roads in the area as well as key junctions including the B4451/B4452 at Deppers Bridge will be required to ensure that local traffic generated by the new settlement uses the most appropriate roads, thereby protecting local villages in the area and minimising rat-running onto less appropriate roads. Given its use as a route to/from M40 Junction 12, a local bypass of Bishop’s
Itchington should be funded by the new settlement. A strategy to protect Ladbroke village (including Ladbroke Hall) will be required in terms of providing suitable access to the new settlement from the A423 via a new junction and link road south of Ladbroke village. Traffic calming measures within Ladbroke village should be provided to reinforce the use of the main access from the A423.

Mitigation will be required to support casualty reduction measures along the B4455 Fosse Way in line with the Route Treatment scheme described above. This will include a major improvement of the A425/B4455 junction.

The proposed LRN mitigation is considered to be broadly affordable. The proposed local bypass of Bishop’s Itchington and access/link road from the A423 will require further detailed work to establish preferred alignments for both schemes, which in turn will inform the need for third-party land acquisition. The County Council will assume that all costs and risks associated with these two schemes would rest with the developer if the new settlement option were to go forward.

Education Impacts

Overall numbers would suggest the need for 1 new secondary school for 6,000 new dwellings and 2 new secondary schools for 10,000 new homes.

At primary we would suggest the need for 3 or 4 new primary schools for 6,000 new dwellings and between 5 and 7 new primary schools for 10,000 new dwellings.

The possibility of delivering all through schools to be considered, i.e. co-location of at least part of the primary offer with new secondary facilities.

There is an assumption that all new primary facilities will include early years facilities and Special Resource Provision facilities.

There is an assumption that all new secondary schools will provide for sixth form teaching on site and that there will also be a Specialist Resource Provision included.

There are no existing schools, primary or Secondary within safe walking distances and so home to school transport would need to be provided for all children until new provision built.