Agenda item

To determine the application.

David Rowen presented the report to members and drew attention to the update report that had been circulated.

Members received a presentation, in accordance with the public participation procedure, from Jake Stentiford, the agent. Mr Stentiford explained that the officer’s report sets out a clear recommendation for approval and recognises that the application is in accordance with the Local Plan and is policy compliant. He stated that the backdrop to the application is the previous planning permission for 58 houses which was an outline consent for an open market scheme with 25% affordable housing which would have equated to 15 affordable homes.

Mr Stentiford explained that he has looked at the site in the context of the very high levels of need for new affordable housing in Chatteris and made the decision to bring forward a scheme of all affordable homes on the site which, in his opinion, is the correct approach. He advised the committee that he has been able to secure more land than that of the previous scheme which has allowed for the provision of more affordable homes as well as increasing the provision of public open space, landscaping and biodiversity areas.

Mr Stentiford made the point that he is very proud of the quality of the design that has been achieved for the scheme which includes generous gardens, public landscaping and open space, along with tree planting throughout the site to create green tree lined streets and a varied materials pallet to maintain the visual interest moving through the site. He explained that as a result of the extensive work undertaken with officers to amend the scheme in order to meet all of the requirements of policy as well as meeting the needs of residents, the application was submitted at the end of 2023 which proves that the application has been considered very carefully and responds positively to consultee comments making appropriate amendments.

Mr Stentiford expressed the view that the result is an excellent quality development which will create a distinctive neighbourhood and be an attractive place to live whilst at the same time making a positive contribution to the character of the town. He added that the development will be delivered in partnership with the housing association which offers a range of benefits as the wider site will remain under one ownership and will be actively managed with ongoing maintenance of public areas, open space, parking and drainage infrastructure as well as the street environment such as managing bins and there will be a permanent single point of contact to resolve any local concerns.

Mr Stentiford stated that the most important issue for this application is the delivery of affordable homes and officers in the Housing Team have provided the latest figures from the housing register with regards to affordable need in Chatteris and the wider area. He stated that that the figures demonstrate a critically urgent situation of families with an immediate need for a suitable affordable home and will firstly be offered to those families with a local connection to Chatteris across all bands who need a 2-, 3- or 4-bedroom home.

Mr Stentiford added that there are 115 households with an immediate need and 60 of these are in bands A or B, which includes families currently occupying a property which has been assessed as posing an urgent or high health and safety risk to them. He explained that separate to those persons with a local connection there are further 265 households who have a preference to live in Chatteris who have an immediate need for 2-, 3- or 4-bedroom home and of those 144 are in bands A or B.

Mr Stentiford made the point that this is an acute level of need which cannot be addressed by single development, however, it is clear that the scheme will go a significant way towards alleviating the situation. He added that the development will deliver a quite exceptional public benefit in the local circumstances and the shortage of quality affordable housing is at the root of many of the social challenges and, in his view, when people have a decent home, their health improves and their ability to work improves.

Mr Stentiford added that the burden on local health services reduces, and productivity rises and he explained that he is ready to move quickly to commence the construction of the scheme with the aim being to be on site by the Summer to make the homes available to those families in desperate need as soon as possible.

Members asked Mr Stentiford the following questions:

·         Councillor Benney asked Mr Stentiford to confirm how quickly can the homes be built out? Mr Stentiford explained that advanced discussions are underway with a housing association who are likely to be coming on board and once the agreement is locked into place the construction can commence swiftly. He added that the grant funding which enables the delivery of the scheme requires that the construction coincides with the funding window and, therefore, there is a lot of pressure to move onto the site quickly and the intention is to be on site by the Summer.

·         Councillor Mrs French asked whether the roadway throughout the site will be adopted should the application be approved? Mr Stentiford stated that it will be adoptable and there are some private drives within the scheme which will be a maximum of 5 which is usual and apart from that the spine road throughout the site is intended to be adopted.

·         Councillor Sennitt Clough asked Mr Stentiford whether he had seen the comments made by Chatteris Town Council who appear not to share the same view concerning the dwellings being increased to 70 and she asked whether Mr Stentiford had considered their comments with regards to the impacts on neighbouring roads? Councillor Sennitt Clough stated that the neighbouring roads are West Street and the junction of West Street and Huntingdon Road. Mr Stentiford stated that the application has been supported by a detailed transport statement which has looked at the impact and found it to be acceptable, with there being some improvements being made to West Street. He made the point that the report gives the scheme support and that the response which has come back from the consultees is that they are in agreement and there have been no objections raised by any internal or external consultees with regards to the impact on roads. Mr Stentiford explained that in terms of the overall density he has agreed with officers that the density being proposed for the site is perfectly acceptable given the context of the site. He added that when considering the context with regards to the need for these affordable homes, in his opinion, that does need to be the prominent consideration, and he made the point that he would not be doing his job right as a Planning Officer to deliver a lower than appropriate density on a site like this in the context of that need. Councillor Sennitt Clough stated that she appreciates that argument given by Mr Stentiford, and she added that as a member of the Planning Committee it is her position to put forward the views of others and that is why she has referred to the comments of the Town Council.

·         Councillor Imafidon asked whether there will be management company appointed to assume responsibility for the public open spaces? Mr Stentiford stated that there will be a Section 106 which will form part of the application which will need to be entered into before the determination and the Section 106 will deal with how the open space is managed. He added that the responsibility will fall to the landowner in the first instance and that will be the housing association and then they can delegate the responsibility for the site management to a management company. Mr Stentiford stated that he expects that in this case it will be the housing association who will retain the responsibility directly for the management of the public realm and landscaping across the whole site.

·         Councillor Imafidon stated that he was under the impression that Mr Stentiford had stated that the ownership was with the contractor and then the housing association will take over after that. He asked Mr Stentiford what the course of action will be if the management company folds and then the residents are left to deal with issues themselves? Mr Stentiford explained that he can provide good assurance in this case as the housing association will own the site and they will be looking after the site in the long term. He added that the Section 106 obligation for the management of the site and the open space is enforceable against them and, therefore, there is always going to be someone responsible and there is long term financial incentive for them to make sure that the management is undertaken properly. 

Members asked questions, made comments and received responses as follows:

·         Councillor Benney stated that the application site falls within his ward and he is aware that there is local objection towards the application, but he knows that there is a justified need for houses. He referred to the Womb Farm development in Chatteris where 60% of the houses have been sold to first time buyers, 58% of the houses have been sold to people who live within a 6-mile radius of Chatteris and 87% of the houses have been sold to people who come from a Cambridgeshire postcode. Councillor Benney stated that is all well and good if you can afford to purchase a property, but families extend and, in some cases, become multi-generational households, with at this current time, the Council spending £1 million pounds on bed and breakfast accommodation in order to provide emergency accommodation due to the lack of homes. He made the point that as councillors they have a legal duty is to provide homes for people and just because people cannot afford to buy their own home, they still need somewhere to live, making the point that Council Tax is going to keep increasing to include paying for temporary accommodation or there is the option for new homes to be built to provide accommodation and to improve the quality of people’s lives. Councillor Benney added that he became a Councillor to help people and to improve the quality of peoples lives and, in his opinion, this will do that, with the application being recommended for approval and if the scheme is turned down it is likely to go appeal, and the Council will be liable to incur costs and cost money. He made the point that as much as people do not want to see the application approved, there is a need for the homes and the application needs to be approved as there is a need for homes in Chatteris which he hopes will go to local people. Councillor Benney added that the figures associated to the Womb Farm development demonstrate that there is a need for housing and to not approve it would be a dereliction of duty in his view.

·         Councillor Connor stated that he agrees with the views of Councillor Benney, and he added that the agent has worked proactively with Planning Officers, and he would welcome the application to be passed as there is a great need for the houses. He stated that he is pleased to hear that should the application be approved that development would start in the Summer and he added that it is one of the better applications that he has seen and he thanked the agent for working in conjunction with officers.

·         Councillor Imafidon stated that there is no reason why the application should be refused, and he will support the application as affordable housing is needed in Fenland as there is such a large waiting list.

Proposed by Councillor Imafidon, seconded by Councillor Marks and agreed that the application be APPROVED as per the officer’s recommendation.

(Councilor Benney registered, in accordance with Paragraph 14 of the Code of Conduct on Planning Matters, that he is a member of Chatteris Town Council but takes no part in planning)