Village Housing Options and Settlement Boundaries

Burton Green Village Hall Committee would like to express the views below on the consultation:

Village Housing Options

The Village Hall Committee support in principle the need for more housing in Burton Green to ensure there is continued support for the hall and may also ease some of our concerns about people leaving Burton Green because of HS2 which could dramatically affect the number of hall users. However, when first presented the WDC Local Plan proposed 50-80 houses in the village. The latest version the number of proposed properties has grown to 70- 90 properties, which as a committee we feel is too large and do not understand the increase in number. It is also not clear if this number is replacing any houses taken by HS2 or is additional? We therefore feel the number of houses should be on the lower scale but would like to see housing for younger people including starter homes, homes suitable for families and those looking to downsize but stay in the Village which would greatly benefit the Hall and ensure our feed of local users is continued.

Equally the existing nature of the village has to be maintained with any development that takes place to ensure our open aspect and rural views are protected. We therefore believe smaller developments or multiple developments would be preferable to a large estate type of development and the design of any new property should be in keeping with the diverse designs of current property.

Burton Green should also remain a village with an independent identity to ensure Burton Green is not absorbed into Coventry or Solihull.

We are greatly supportive of plans that encompass a new village hall but do strongly suggest the village hall committee is consulted on this which to date has not happened by any of the parties involved in the Local Plan. Our need is for a much larger footprint of land than we have at present to allow a larger more practical new build hall to take place to meet the needs of our users. We also need assurances of sufficient parking space allowance as the current provision is inadequate. Creating recreational and open space next to the new hall site would also be preferable and suggestions of linking this with the school would seem beneficial. Most crucially for the Committee with the threat of HS2 we will need the new hall to be built and fully accessible before any work on HS2 commences and this needs to be taken into consideration in planning applications.

We also have a strong view as the Village Hall Committee that we would also like to be located as near to the nucleus of the village as possible so many of our users could walk to the hall meaning a greater number of more mature residents, particularly those who do not drive, could still be able to use the facility and we could therefore expand our service provision to those people.

We also believe that the impact of the Local Plan, HS2 developments and local needs are considered holistically. As the main public facility within the village we should be given priority in planning any new development.

Greenbelt alignment

The Village Hall Committee has the following comments regarding the realignment of Greenbelt:

As a committee we strongly believe in protecting the rural and open character of the village and would like to see as much greenbelt as possible protected through the Local Plan.

At present there is no real consideration for HS2, any development that is needed to address the housing need arising from HS2 demolitions, including the Village Hall, needs to be completed before HS2 work starts. Also as this plan is for the long term it needs to address land released by HS2 post construction. For example, there should be consideration given to using the land above the tunnel to provide green space, such as community orchards, allotments, skate parks or nature reserves which are some of the suggestions from the Parish Plan.

Regarding the greenbelt realignment we are happy that the majority of the village remains in greenbelt, as this helps maintain the essential rural and open character of the village. We note that the village boundary shows a relaxation of the green belt that includes back gardens. We are therefore concerned that this may lead to planning applications for back garden developments that would be out of character for the village.

In summary, we broadly support the Local Plan but are concerned about:
* The number of properties proposed for the village.
* Getting the location of the new village hall right in terms of being centrally located in the most dense part of the developments
* The Local plan team and developers should consult with the Village Hall Committee as a priority and not make any decisions without our involvement
* Interaction and coordination with HS2 needs to be achieved to ensure the Village Hall gets the best deal possible in terms of increased building footprint, location, sufficient parking to meet our needs and linked facilities such as recreational and green space
* Greenbelt should be protected at all costs