Great Chishill
Welcome to our information about our proposals for the land south of Hall Lane, Great Chishill.
Who we are
RO Land is a land promotion business. We are part of the RO Group, a family business operating for over 90 years. A land promotion business means we work with land owners and housebuilders to unlock land to help deliver new homes.
The site
The site is located south of Hall Lane, Great Chishill. The land is an in-fill site, situated with Colts Croft to the west and Waller’s Close to the east. Over the last few years, the land has been used for growing hay.
The site is bounded by a hedgerow fronting Hall Lane and various trees on its western, eastern and southern boundaries. A Tree survey has been undertaken in order to understand the type, size and condition of the existing trees and to understand the root protection areas required if the site is developed.
Properties in Colts Croft and Waller’s Close border the site and proposals for the site will need to respond to these properties.
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There are views from Hall Lane and the public right of way to the north of Hall Lane looking southwardly through the site to open countryside beyond. Our proposals for the site will need to respond to this.
Affordable Housing Need
The price of a home in South Cambridgeshire
Buying a home is extremely expensive in South Cambridgeshire with an average house price of £459,000. The average house price to average income ratio is 9.5 (up from 7.5 in 2011). Because buying a home is so expensive, renting a home on the private rental market is also extremely expensive. This creates a huge need for affordable housing.
Affordable Housing in South Cambridgeshire – Supply and Demand.
Only 359 affordable homes were built in South Cambridgeshire in 2021/22. The annual need identified in the 2018 Local Plan is 910.
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Housing Needs Survey
We commissioned Cambridgeshire ACRE to conduct a Housing Needs Survey in Great Chishill in Spring 2023 to understand the need within the village for affordable housing. This survey shows 14 residents are in need of a property within the Affordable Rent tenure (ie at a rent discounted from the market rate). You can find out more about a Housing Needs Survey and Rural Exception Site policy below.
RO Land consider that the land south of Hall Lane is highly suitable for a development of affordable homes (under Rural Exception Site policy, see below) to meet clear local need in Great Chishill and the local area.
Planning Policy on Rural Exception Sites
National Planning Policy
The National Planning Policy Framework (last updated September 2023) is the document that guides planning policy in every local authority across the country, including South Cambridgeshire. This document states that local authorities should ‘support opportunities to bring forward Rural Exception Sites that will provide affordable housing to meet identified local needs’.
Extract from the National Planning Policy Framework (2023)
What is a ‘Rural Exception Site’?
A Rural Exception Site is a site that is eligible for planning permission because the proposals are for affordable housing to meet an identified local need for affordable housing. Such proposals qualify for special rules (hence, ‘an exception’) that allow for planning permission to be granted.
The purpose of a Rural Exception Site is to address local housing need and sustain rural communities.
As part of the planning application, evidence of need is required in the form of a Housing Needs Survey. This report gives a comprehensive picture of need, combining the information on the local authority’s Housing Need Register with the results of an up to date survey completed by respondents in the local area.
You can find out more about the Housing Needs Survey we commissioned here.
South Cambridgeshire District Council Planning Policy
Like many local authorities, South Cambridgeshire has created a Local Plan, its own planning policy. The current Plan was adopted in 2018. This supports the commitment in national planning policy to Rural Exception sites.
Extract from the South Cambridgeshire District Council Local Plan (2018) – Policy on Rural Exception Sites
Proposals
We are submitting an outline planning application for ‘up to 20 affordable homes’. As part of this, we have developed an illustrative masterplan that shows how the site would accommodate 20 homes above Masterplan as follows:
• All homes will be affordable, with 14 affordable rent homes and 6 shared ownership properties.
• Access is provided via Hall Lane within a stretch of the road with a 30mph limit.
• Our indicative masterplan shows some homes front Hall Lane. The existing hedgerow to Hall Lane is largely retained except for the section removed to provide access.
• Our indicative masterplan includes 40 car parking spaces, meeting the requirements of South Cambridgeshire District Council.
• A Sustainable Drainage System will ensure that heavy rainfall flows into a pond. Our indicative plans show this located in the south-west corner of the site. The water will then be discharged into a ditch to the south at the same rate as discharge occurs from the field in its current state.
• Our proposals will protect the view from the road and public footpath to the north looking southwards through the site to the open countryside beyond.
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We will submit an outline planning application. This means that, if approved, the site will be able to accommodate up to 20 homes, subject to approval of further detail about the homes proposed.
Illustrative view of how proposals could look (view looking south from Hall Lane)
Illustrative view of how proposals could look (view looking north-west towards centre of village). Colts Croft is on the left and Waller’s Close on the right.
Consultation and Next steps
We consulted Great Chishill residents in Spring 2022 and also commissioned a Housing Needs Survey of the village in Spring 2023. We have engaged in pre-application consultation with the Parish Council for the last two years.
We intend to submit our planning application in October 2023. We expect the planning application to be determined in Spring 2024. Construction could begin in 2025.
If approved, the site will be sold to a housing association who will then need to submit a ‘reserved matters’ application to provide more detail about the 20 homes they propose to build.
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If you have any questions about the proposals, please contact: paddy.kent@rogroup.co.uk