In short, yes. Although our planning application is being prepared alongside the new Local Plan, lead times for a major development such as this mean that there will be several years from when planning permission is granted to when first occupations are achieved. Progressing work on a planning application at this time, rather than after the Local Plan is adopted, will demonstrate deliverability and limit the lead-in time and enable much needed housing to be provided at the earliest opportunity.
In the absence of an up-to-date Plan, several speculative planning applications have been submitted and have cited the significant under-delivery of homes as sufficient for the very special circumstances required to grant planning permission for development in the Green Belt. This approach has proven successful (e.g. Chiswell Green, Colney Heath, Sewell Park). However, Hallam Land and St Albans School have taken a different strategy and have put in place a comprehensive programme of engagement with both County and District local authorities, and other key stakeholders. Our emerging proposals therefore reflect lengthy collaboration and the St Albans Strategic Sites Design Guidance: Masterplan Toolkit (July 2023).
The Green Belt essentially encompasses all of the land adjacent to settlements in St Albans District, as it does for many settlements in southwest Hertfordshire. The general extent of the Green Belt’s current boundaries was established in the 1980s- and there have been no changes to its inner boundary since the 1994 Local Plan.
The Green Belt has been effective in containing growth. Only where very special circumstances have been proven has planning permission been granted. Without formal amendment to the Green Belt, the chronic under-delivery of housing means that further piecemeal and uncontrolled erosion is inevitable.
The success of the Green Belt has severely constrained the supply of new land for housing and housing completions, particularly family housing. This in turn has impacted on the affordability of housing as demand outstrips supply, and as a consequence, there is an acute need for affordable housing. The Green Belt is a policy designation rather than an environmental constraint and Local Plans should review Green Belt boundaries at appropriate times. The demographics of the district are changing; the population is ageing as fewer families and young people can afford to live in the district.
For at least a decade it has been accepted that, in order to meet the District’s development needs, the Green Belt boundary needs to be amended.
We acknowledge there are areas of congestion on the local highway network but there are limited opportunities to create additional highway capacity. However, the local and national policy direction is to support uptake of active travel and public transport modes as a way of creating additional capacity and encouraging less car use (known as “modal shift”). This is a national issue, and all highways’ authorities are approaching development in the same way.
We have undertaken a significant amount of engagement with Hertfordshire County Council (HCC), the local highway authority. They accept that increasing road capacity is not practicable but they recognise the importance of improving the way walkers and cyclists access the key destinations in the city.
This means that it will be important to put forward a strategy to increase the number of people undertaking existing and new trips by sustainable modes. As such, the proposed strategy is to invest in significant infrastructure across the city to not only support the development but also to support wider behaviour change, improve safety and support the aspirations of the County Council’s “Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan” (LCWIP). We can help accelerate and support this through appropriate funding. This will help to provide a genuine choice of sustainable travel modes with lower levels of car usage.
The proposed development will help to fund meaningful measures along and around the Harpenden Road corridor to support alternative travel choices. We are undertaking modelling in close discussion with the County Council to determine the impacts on journey times across key parts of the network and this modelling will be presented as part of a planning application.
Specifically, we understand the existing congestion along the Harpenden Road north of the Ancient Briton junction. There is no scope to provide additional highway capacity at this junction and so the proposals are to effect travel behavioural change amongst existing and future users as a means of mitigating highway impacts. In a situation where no real alternatives to provide opportunities for new and existing residents to adopt different travel behaviours are provided, traffic volumes could continue to grow (even without the proposed development) and thereby worsening conditions further.
The development will require an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), and we have consulted with the District Council and other stakeholders to determine the scope of the assessment. This was done via an EIA Screening and Scoping Request, which we submitted to the District Council. The details of this can be found on the Council’s website (https://www.stalbans.gov.uk/view-and-track-planning-applications) quoting reference 23/07/2024.
We are now assessing the likely environmental effects of the project. This includes studying various factors such as transport, air quality, water resources, biodiversity, and socio-economic effects, among other disciplines. As part of this assessment, we will propose measures to avoid, reduce, or offset significant adverse impacts. This step ensures that the project incorporates strategies to minimise its environmental footprint. We will then prepare an Environmental Statement that documents the findings of the impact analysis and the proposed mitigation measures.
This will be submitted alongside the planning application with a non-technical summary of the Environmental Statement.
The Site is located within Flood Zone 1, the lowest risk flood zone, deemed to have a 0.1% annual probability of flooding from fluvial sources. It is important to distinguish between fluvial flooding and surface water flooding, as set out below:
Fluvial Flooding
During times of heavy rainfall, the capacity of watercourses can be exceeded, resulting in flooding to land, infrastructure and homes: this is known as fluvial flooding. The Environment Agency produce the publicly available Flood Map for Planning which categorises the potential fluvial flood risk into Flood Zones, assuming no flood defences are present within the area.
There is no significant watercourse within or near the development Site. The Site is situated wholly within Flood Zone 1 which is the lowest risk flood zone and deemed to have less than a 1 in 1,000-Year chance of flooding (0.1% Annual Probability of Flooding) in any given year. As such, flood risk from fluvial sources is considered very low.
Surface Water Flooding
Surface water run-off generally occurs after heavy rainfall. Currently, there is no formal way to drain surface water from the Site. As such, water run-off will follow the natural topography, draining in an easterly direction towards the boundary of the Site, particularly as the ground becomes increasingly saturated.
Two key surface water flow routes are identified to cross the Site from the northwest and southwest of the Site, pooling in an existing depression below the rail bridge along the eastern boundary during the 1 in 30-year (High Risk), 1 in 100-year (Medium Risk and 1 in 1,000-year (Low Risk) events.
We know that Sandridgebury Lane is susceptible to flooding as a result of field run-off, especially close to the railway bridge. The final Site design will include significant attenuation areas as part of the green infrastructure, and these are being designed to accommodate the current surface water run-off and prevent this flooding.
The central section of Sandridgebury Lane running through the Site forms part of the proposed active travel strategy for the development. The vision is to create a green lane for walking and cycling (active travel) modes, and to close this central section through the Site to vehicular traffic.
Access to current properties on the western section of Sandridgebury Lane and the St Albans Girls School would be maintained from Harpenden Road. There will be suitable turning facilities for School and residential traffic. Beyond this point, Sandridgebury Lane would be closed to vehicles.
There will be a new route from the development’s main junction on Harpenden Road through the Site which will rejoin Sandridgebury Lane close to the railway bridge.
Conditions would be carefully monitored to ensure the volume of vehicle movements passing through the Site from west and east is appropriate within the context of the development.
At certain times of day, traffic currently uses Sandridgebury Lane to avoid congestion at the Ancient Briton and King William IV junctions. The proposals for Sandridgebury Lane would continue to facilitate movements between Sandridge and the Harpenden Road to the north of the Ancient Briton junction via the internal development roads. It is worth noting that this would reduce the volume of traffic passing St Albans Girls School, improving safety in this key area. Sandridgebury Lane is a historic lane that is not suitable for modern traffic and the new route through the Site would provide more appropriate infrastructure.
We understand that Cala Homes are working closely with the Hertfordshire County Council to design a scheme which is in line with design guidance whilst taking account of any constraints. It is our understanding from the County Council that an acceptable design is nearing completion.
Significant design work and engagement with the County Council has been undertaken and, even if the Cala infrastructure is not delivered, the proposed active travel strategy would not be undermined. A parallel route to Beech Road via Valley Road forms part of the proposals to support Woollam Park. In addition, improved infrastructure along Harpenden Road connecting the Site with the existing National Cycle Network route which passes through New Greens is also being proposed.
We are committing to providing 40% of the total number of new homes as affordable homes. This equates to up to 400 new affordable homes.
To provide vehicular access to the Site, we will need to redevelop three rugby pitches currently used by the Old Albanian Sports Association (“OASA”). In full agreement with the OASA, we will be re-providing these pitches, and they will be located on the field adjacent to OASA’s existing ground. They will be completed and ready for OASA’s use before we start work on the access road. Alongside these replacement pitches, we will also be providing a new pavilion annex for OASA.
The current access road to the OASA and Woollam playing fields will be retained, so the School, OASA members and visitors will still be able to access the pitches as usual.
