Preferred Options

The identification of Lapworth as a category 1 village to accomodate 100 dwellings over the plan period is supported.

Lapworth represents a sustainable location for new housing development to meet identified needs. Lapworth has a population of approximately 2,000 people, with a range of facilities including pre-school and primary school, GP surgery, village hall, shops, pubs and restaurants. The settlement benefits from a railway station on the Chiltern Line from London to Birmingham, offering regular services to Birmingham, Solihull, Warwick and Leamington Spa.

The attached report sets out the potetial for land to the east of Station Lane, Lapworth to accomodate new development. We consider that the land to the east of Station Lane is suitably and sustainably located to meet identified local housing needs by providing a mix of dwelling types, styles and tenures including family homes at a location that is well related to existing services, facilities and public transport. The benefits of the site can be summarised as follows:
- Single ownership site, available now
- Certainty of delivery
- A self contained, easily and quickly developed site
- Limited infrastructure requirements and short lead-in to development
- Local facilities within easy reach
- Well located in relation to Solihull and Leamington Spa, offering significant employment, retail, community facilities, services and public transport.
- Highly accessible to Birmingham and other main centres.
- Free from significant environmental constraints
- Development of the scale proposed will not compromise the role and function of the Green Belt

This site therefore represents a sustainable, well located and deliverable opportunity for high quality development to meet identified housing needs. The site should therefore be removed from the Green Belt and allocated for up to 100 houses phased to come forward at an early stage in the local plan timeframe.

The identification of Lapworth as a village to be removed from the Green Belt, with new Green Belt boundaries drawn up around the settlements to allow for development is supported.

Lapworth represents a sustainable location for new housing development to meet identified needs. Land to the east of Station Lane is suitably and sustainably located to meet identified local housing needs, as set out in the accompanying report.

As well as accomodating new development as proposed in the plan, the revised Green Belt boundaries should be drawn to allow for the longer-term development needs of Lapworth.