Draft Black Country Plan

Object

Representation ID: 18016

Received: 11/10/2021

Respondent: Mike Wood MP

[DUH213]

Please find enclosed a copy of my response to the consultation on the draft Black
Country Plan, with regard to site reference DUH213 at Crestwood Park.

I object to the proposal due concerns relating to:


• Loss of green space and recreational facilities
• Impact on local wildlife and natural habitats
• Cumulative impact of many other developments in the local area on local roads,
schools and health services
• The site is poorly located for the parts of the Black Country that are expected to
experience highest population growth over the course of this plan.

I hope that you will reconsider these proposals.

I am responding as the local Member of Parliament for Dudley South and my comments reflect a variety of different emails and letters that I have received from local residents in relation to this site.

I wish to object to the proposals for site DUH213 - the open green land opposite Crestwood
Park Primary School on the Crestwood Park estate in Kingswinford.

The selected site off, Lapwood Avenue, is an open space that is directly opposite a primary school, on a road that is already severely congested. Often both sides of the road are full of vehicles – this of course also overflows on to other nearby roads.

The proposal to build 45 houses on this well-loved space would undoubtedly cause
difficulties for parents and residents of the estate. Developing on this site would mean the loss
of valuable recreation space for local residents and pupils at the three surrounding schools,
and would fundamentally alter the character of this pleasant residential estate.

The site assessment for this site erroneously suggests, that there would be no “Impact on the wider road network”, this is not true. There would be a significant effect will happen on the local road network, several times a day, outside the school.

Lapwood Avenue is accessed via the busy Bromley Lane. This road has been the location of several road traffic collisions and accidents, including a local school girl. Development on this site would add further to the congestion and hazards already associated with this stretch of road.

The surrounding roads simply do not have the infrastructure to deal with this let alone the proposals to create an access through the estate and the newly proposed Ketley Quarry site.

This takes me on nicely to my next objection. The very suggestion of opening up Lapwood Avenue to access the new Ketley Quarry site (BCP Ref 203) would also further impact the business of local roads in addition to create a shortcut through to the Dudley Road. This will also cause a significant increase in road traffic, with people accessing the estate as a rabbit run though to the Dudley Road.

It is worth reminding the authority that there are also new large housing estates just moments away from Crestwood Park including the new estates on Stallings Lane which was rightly built on brownfield.

The methodology underlying the draft Black Country Plan is fundamentally flawed. Instead of recognising the need to link areas for development with levels of population growth in different parts of the region, the draft plan is indifferent to where in the Black Country sites are located. This has led to the perverse - and illogical - proposal that very large numbers of houses (including those that have either recently been completed or which are currently under construction) ought to be developed in a small area around Kingswinford and Pensnett even though ONS project very low levels of population growth in those parts of the region, while boroughs with far higher projected population growth are due to build far fewer new homes than Dudley. This is enormously unfair on residents in Dudley who face the loss of precious green spaces so that homes can be built that are not needed by local people, but it is also
unfair on those families in areas of the Black Country that will need many more houses but will be expected to move miles away to the other side of the region.

There is a clear need for decision-makers to make renewed efforts to secure additional brownfield sites, to invest in any land remediation necessary to make them suitable for housing development, and to avoid development on important green spaces such as this.

I very much hope that these objections are not only noted but that this site is removed from the draft plan at the first opportunity.

Object

Representation ID: 18018

Received: 11/10/2021

Respondent: Mike Wood MP

[DUH216]

Please find enclosed a copy of my response to the consultation on the draft Black
Country Plan, with regard to site reference DUH216 at Bryce Road. I object to the proposal due concerns relating to:
• Loss of green space
• Impact on local roads, congestion and road safety
• Pressure on local schools and health services
• Cumulative impact of many other developments in the local area
• The site is poorly located for the parts of the Black Country that are expected to experience highest population growth over the course of this plan.


I hope that you will reconsider these proposals.

Ref: DUH216

As Member of Parliament for Dudley South, I am writing to outline my objections to the proposals included in the Black Country Plan under BCP Site Reference DUH216.

If approved, this proposal could see 115 news homes built on greenfield land at Bryce Road in Pensnett.

My objections focus around three key concerns:

1) The loss of green space provision
Having green spaces close by people's homes is essential for both their physical and mental health.
Many residents who live on Bryce Road, Rookery Park, Tiled House Lane and other surrounding roads tell me how they use this green space to walk their dogs, play games and sports with their children, and more generally to go for a simple walk to exercise and enjoy the outdoors.

If proposals to build 115 homes on this site were to be accepted, even with a token allocation of 25% of the space being allowed for open space and infrastructure, residents would see the size of this amenity reduced so significantly that it would be lost as the asset that it currently is.

2) Pressure on Bryce Road and Bromley Lane as a result of vehicle access to the new development, and other proposed and existing developments
Vehicle access to a new development would likely be via Bryce Road, accessed from Bromley Lane.

Residents already express concerns about congestion and pressure on parking in these areas, and therefore they are deeply concerned about the inevitable consequences of further pressure from 115 new homes.

3) Pressure on local schools and GP services
Already, local parents often have difficulty getting their children into the school of their choice, and in many cases find themselves adding their child's name to a waiting list only to find they have to choose another school.

Similarly, residents speak of great difficulty in obtaining GP appointments, often having to wait weeks to see any GP and even longer if they request to see their GP of choice.

We know that we need more housing to make sure there are enough homes for future generations – but when deciding where those homes are built, we have to consider the capacity of local services to cope.

Taken in isolation, the impact of the 115 homes proposed for Bryce Road might appear manageable, but the effect of thousands of new homes – either recently completed, currently under construction or proposed under this draft Plan – within a short distance of Pensnett would put local infrastructure and services under severe pressure. It is this cumulative impact that must be considered.

The methodology underlying the draft Black Country Plan is fundamentally flawed. Instead of recognising the need to link areas for development with levels of population growth in different parts of the region, the draft plan is indifferent to where in the Black Country sites are located. This has led to the perverse - and illogical - proposal that very large numbers of houses (including those that have either recently been completed or which are currently under construction) ought to be developed in a small area around Kingswinford and Pensnett even though ONS project very low levels of population growth in those parts of the region, while boroughs with far higher projected population growth are due to build far fewer new homes than Dudley. This is enormously unfair on residents in Dudley who face the loss of precious green spaces so that homes can be built that are not needed by local people, but it is also unfair on those families in areas of the Black Country that will need many more houses but will be expected to move miles away to the other side of the region.

There is a clear need for decision-makers to make renewed efforts to secure additional brownfield sites, to invest in any land remediation necessary to make them suitable for housing development, and to avoid development on important green spaces such as this.

In conclusion, with these three key concerns in mind, I reiterate my objection to proposal DUH16 in the Black Country Plan and encourage decision-makers to instead further exhaust development opportunities on brownfield land and ensure that residents living near to Bryce Road and Blackwater Close can continue to have access to the recreational space that they need and do not suffer the cumulative effects of enormous development within such a short distance of Pensnett.

Object

Representation ID: 18019

Received: 11/10/2021

Respondent: Mike Wood MP

[DUH222]

Country Plan, with regard to site reference DUH222 at Severn Drive. I object to the proposal due concerns relating to:
• Loss of green space and recreational facilities
• Impact on local wildlife and natural habitats
• Cumulative impact of many other developments in the local area on local roads, schools and health services
• The site is poorly located for the parts of the Black Country that are expected to experience highest population growth over the course of this plan.


I hope that you will reconsider these proposals


Ref: DUH222

As the local Member of Parliament for Dudley South, I am writing to submit my objection to the proposed development of Corbyns Hall Open Space, Severn Drive, Pensnett (BCP Ref DUH222).
I object to proposals for the development of this site for the reasons listed below.

The green space at Severn Drive is at the heart of the local community and is used on a daily basis by families, dog walkers and as a safe area for children to play outside. With the high density of housing and little access to recreational open spaces, this site is vital to resident’s mental health and wellbeing which has especially been the case during the pandemic.

The use of the field as the cover image for the latest edition of Dudley Council’s “Your borough, Your home” magazine highlights the importance of this green space to the local community.

The large abundance of wildlife in the area must also be taken into consideration. The site is home to endangered species such as bats, and newts, which would be irrevocably displaced by the development of the proposed 15 new homes.

Furthermore, my constituents living in the area have already been in contact with me regarding their concerns about the current levels of traffic congestion. The local infrastructure is struggling to cope with the present volume of traffic so further families with vehicles moving to the area would only exacerbate this issue. Residents also have problems with accessing the estate, they tell me that entering and exiting the estate through Corbyns Hall Road and Corbyns Hall Lane is very difficult as the roads are congested and narrowed by parked cars. The cumulative impact of new development in and around Pensnett will place unsustainable pressures on the local road network, and the proposals for further housing on this site near Severn Drive will make an extremely difficult situation even worse.

In addition, Severn Drive is a fairly narrow road and these new homes would place additional pressure on parking.

Finally, services in the area are already stretched, especially following recent housing developments being built such as at Gibbons Lane. I regularly receive emails and telephone calls from my constituents regarding their concerns about waiting times for doctor’s appointments and since the local GP practice in Pensnett, High Oak Surgery, closed this has forced residents to travel elsewhere for treatment. Schools are also facing immense pressure due to being over-subscribed which is leaving students on long waiting lists for a place at their preferred school.

It is concerning that the assessments made of the site in the evidence base published alongside the draft Plan contain such basic factual errors as to call into question whether the person responsible had actually visited the area - or was even looking at the right part of the map! Local residents will struggle to locate the canal that the RAG assessment claims separates the site from existing dwellings.

The methodology underlying the draft Black Country Plan is fundamentally flawed. Instead of recognising the need to link areas for development with levels of population growth in different parts of the region, the draft plan is indifferent to where in the Black Country sites are located. This has led to the perverse - and illogical - proposal that very large numbers of houses (including those that have either recently been completed or which are currently under construction) ought to be developed in a small area around Kingswinford and Pensnett even though ONS project very low levels of population growth in those parts of the region, while boroughs with far higher projected population growth are due to build far fewer new homes than Dudley. This is enormously unfair on residents in Dudley who face the loss of precious green spaces so that homes can be built that are not needed by local people, but it is also unfair on those families in areas of the Black Country that will need many more houses but will be expected to move miles away to the other side of the region.

There is a clear need for decision-makers to make renewed efforts to secure additional brownfield sites, to invest in any land remediation necessary to make them suitable for housing development, and to avoid development on important green spaces such as this.

In conclusion, I object to the proposed development on Severn Drive and would encourage this site to be withdrawn from the draft Plan, and further alternative sites on brownfield land to be sought.

Object

Representation ID: 18022

Received: 11/10/2021

Respondent: Mike Wood MP

Please find enclosed a copy of my response to the consultation on the draft Black Country Plan, with regard to sites reference DUH208 at Holbeache and DUH211 at the Triangle in Kingswinford.

I object to the proposal to release these sites from the Green Belt, and have particular concerns relating to:

• Loss of green space and recreational facilities
• Impact on local wildlife and natural habitats
• Impact on local main roads that area already congested and have high levels of
air pollution
• Impact on local schools and health services
• The site is poorly located for the parts of the Black Country that are expected to
experience highest population growth over the course of this plan.

I do not believe that these proposals meet the statutory threshold for releasing Green
Belt land for development and hope that you will reconsider

Ref: DUH208 (Holbeache) and DUH211 (The Triangle, Kingswinford)

I am responding as the local Member of Parliament for Dudley South to object to the proposals for sites DUH208 and DUH211, two of the few remaining Green Belt sites in the constituency that I represent.

For generations these spaces have provided a place for people to exercise and relax and their importance has only become more apparent in the last two years as they have proved vital to people’s physical and mental health throughout the pandemic.

The proposed release of this green belt land is completely inappropriate and unacceptable. The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that Green Belt boundaries should only be altered under limited and fully evidenced exceptional circumstances. This threshold is not met in this case, and there are no such exceptional circumstances that would warrant the inclusion of Holbeache and The Triangle in this Plan and so the Green Belt designation should be retained.

If these sites were released the effect on the local community would be wholly negative.

As well as the damage caused to the local environment, and to natural habitats, developing these two Green Belt sites would have an unbearable impact on local infrastructure and public services, many of which are already stretched to their limits.

My office already receives regular complaints about congestion on the roads of Wall Heath and Kingswinford. With a UK average of 1.2 cars per household, an extra 863 homes would result in at least 1,035 additional cars on local roads. In reality, because of poor public transport connections serving the two sites, it is likely that most of the new houses would have at least two cars each.

Our local road network is simply unable to cope with this increased traffic. The main roads around these developments – the A4101 between Kingswinford and Russells Hall Hospital, and the A491 Stourbridge-Wolverhampton road – are both very busy roads, suffering from heavy congestion during peak times and with little opportunity to relieve existing pressures through road improvement works. The parts of the A491 around Wordsley High Street – less than two miles from these two sites – already have some of the worst levels of air pollution anywhere in the West Midlands. Building nearly 900 more on houses on these two sites – on top of the more than 1,000 other homes within two miles of the sites that are either proposed under this plan, are under construction or have been completed in the past few years – would bring our local highways to a standstill.

Our public transport system likewise could not cope with 863 new homes. Largely limited to buses without ready rail access, increased demand will impact reliability and availability. At a time when pressing environmental concerns mean the Government is encouraging anyone who can to use public transport making our service more crowded and less reliable would be a backwards step.

There would also result in increased pressure on our local schools. The majority of schools in the area are already oversubscribed, without a significant investment in our local schools they will be unable to support new pupils.

Our local NHS services, whether Russells Hall Hospital or our GPs, would also struggle with the increased pressure. Already people struggle to see a Doctor face to face, this would only become harder if this plan were to go ahead. Reducing ready access to necessary medical treatment could have long-term health impacts on my constituents that I find unacceptable.

With mounting concerns about sustainability and biodiversity, destroying this natural habitat on the edge of our communities would be a mistake. We must protect this natural inheritance, acting as stewards so that future generations can witness , and enjoy the sight of blooming poppies at the Triangle and daffodils at Holbeache.

The methodology underlying the draft Black Country Plan is fundamentally flawed. Instead of recognising the need to link areas for development with levels of population growth in different parts of the region, the draft plan is indifferent to where in the Black Country sites are located. This has led to the perverse - and illogical - proposal that very large numbers of houses (including those that have either recently been completed or which are currently under construction) ought to be developed in a small area around Kingswinford and Pensnett even though ONS project very low levels of population growth in those parts of the region, while boroughs with far higher projected population growth are due to build far fewer new homes than Dudley. This is enormously unfair on residents in Dudley who face the loss of precious green spaces so that homes can be built that are not needed by local people, but it is also unfair on those families in areas of the Black Country that will need many more houses but will be expected to move miles away to the other side of the region.

There is a clear need for decision-makers to make renewed efforts to secure additional brownfield sites, to invest in any land remediation necessary to make them suitable for housing development, and to avoid development on important green spaces such as these.

I very much hope that these objections are not only noted but that these sites are removed from the draft plan at the first opportunity.

Object

Representation ID: 18023

Received: 11/10/2021

Respondent: Mike Wood MP

Please find enclosed a copy of my response to the consultation on the draft Black Country Plan, with regard to sites reference DUH208 at Holbeache and DUH211 at the Triangle in Kingswinford.

I object to the proposal to release these sites from the Green Belt, and have particular concerns relating to:

• Loss of green space and recreational facilities
• Impact on local wildlife and natural habitats
• Impact on local main roads that area already congested and have high levels of
air pollution
• Impact on local schools and health services
• The site is poorly located for the parts of the Black Country that are expected to
experience highest population growth over the course of this plan.

I do not believe that these proposals meet the statutory threshold for releasing Green
Belt land for development and hope that you will reconsider

Ref: DUH208 (Holbeache) and DUH211 (The Triangle, Kingswinford)

I am responding as the local Member of Parliament for Dudley South to object to the proposals for sites DUH208 and DUH211, two of the few remaining Green Belt sites in the constituency that I represent.

For generations these spaces have provided a place for people to exercise and relax and their importance has only become more apparent in the last two years as they have proved vital to people’s physical and mental health throughout the pandemic.

The proposed release of this green belt land is completely inappropriate and unacceptable. The National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that Green Belt boundaries should only be altered under limited and fully evidenced exceptional circumstances. This threshold is not met in this case, and there are no such exceptional circumstances that would warrant the inclusion of Holbeache and The Triangle in this Plan and so the Green Belt designation should be retained.

If these sites were released the effect on the local community would be wholly negative.

As well as the damage caused to the local environment, and to natural habitats, developing these two Green Belt sites would have an unbearable impact on local infrastructure and public services, many of which are already stretched to their limits.

My office already receives regular complaints about congestion on the roads of Wall Heath and Kingswinford. With a UK average of 1.2 cars per household, an extra 863 homes would result in at least 1,035 additional cars on local roads. In reality, because of poor public transport connections serving the two sites, it is likely that most of the new houses would have at least two cars each.

Our local road network is simply unable to cope with this increased traffic. The main roads around these developments – the A4101 between Kingswinford and Russells Hall Hospital, and the A491 Stourbridge-Wolverhampton road – are both very busy roads, suffering from heavy congestion during peak times and with little opportunity to relieve existing pressures through road improvement works. The parts of the A491 around Wordsley High Street – less than two miles from these two sites – already have some of the worst levels of air pollution anywhere in the West Midlands. Building nearly 900 more on houses on these two sites – on top of the more than 1,000 other homes within two miles of the sites that are either proposed under this plan, are under construction or have been completed in the past few years – would bring our local highways to a standstill.

Our public transport system likewise could not cope with 863 new homes. Largely limited to buses without ready rail access, increased demand will impact reliability and availability. At a time when pressing environmental concerns mean the Government is encouraging anyone who can to use public transport making our service more crowded and less reliable would be a backwards step.

There would also result in increased pressure on our local schools. The majority of schools in the area are already oversubscribed, without a significant investment in our local schools they will be unable to support new pupils.

Our local NHS services, whether Russells Hall Hospital or our GPs, would also struggle with the increased pressure. Already people struggle to see a Doctor face to face, this would only become harder if this plan were to go ahead. Reducing ready access to necessary medical treatment could have long-term health impacts on my constituents that I find unacceptable.

With mounting concerns about sustainability and biodiversity, destroying this natural habitat on the edge of our communities would be a mistake. We must protect this natural inheritance, acting as stewards so that future generations can witness protected species like red kites and enjoy the sight of blooming poppies at the Triangle and daffodils at Holbeache.

The methodology underlying the draft Black Country Plan is fundamentally flawed. Instead of recognising the need to link areas for development with levels of population growth in different parts of the region, the draft plan is indifferent to where in the Black Country sites are located. This has led to the perverse - and illogical - proposal that very large numbers of houses (including those that have either recently been completed or which are currently under construction) ought to be developed in a small area around Kingswinford and Pensnett even though ONS project very low levels of population growth in those parts of the region, while boroughs with far higher projected population growth are due to build far fewer new homes than Dudley. This is enormously unfair on residents in Dudley who face the loss of precious green spaces so that homes can be built that are not needed by local people, but it is also unfair on those families in areas of the Black Country that will need many more houses but will be expected to move miles away to the other side of the region.

There is a clear need for decision-makers to make renewed efforts to secure additional brownfield sites, to invest in any land remediation necessary to make them suitable for housing development, and to avoid development on important green spaces such as these.

I very much hope that these objections are not only noted but that these sites are removed from the draft plan at the first opportunity.

Object

Representation ID: 21513

Received: 11/10/2021

Respondent: Mike Wood MP

Number of people: 986

We oppose releasing the Green Belt land at the Kingswinford Triangle and Holbeache for development, call for those sites to be removed from the draft Black Country Plan, and urge more work to be done to find alternative choices on brownfield sites.

Object

Representation ID: 21514

Received: 11/10/2021

Respondent: Mike Wood MP

Number of people: 986

We oppose releasing the Green Belt land at the Kingswinford Triangle and Holbeache for development, call for those sites to be removed from the draft Black Country Plan, and urge more work to be done to find alternative choices on brownfield sites.