Archive for year: 2020

The consultation on the Local Plan ends on Monday 14th December 2020. The Plan proposes a site for development on School Road, Hockley Heath, which involves changing the current greenbelt boundary and the removal of the washed over greenbelt which may lead to two additional smaller developments in the future, subject to planning approval. The Parish Council of Hockley Heath has objected to the development of the School Road site and you can view the response to the final consultation below:

Your Representation (100 words maximum)

Limited infrastructure in Hockley Heath, The Parish Council raises the following:

Bus service to Birmingham is on Sunday/bank holidays only.

Nearest train service, Doctor’s surgery and pharmacy is 2.5 miles away, via an hourly bus service.

No Post Office.

Primary school concerns regarding over subscription.

Catchment secondary school located 5 miles away.

Large volumes and speed of traffic on School Road and A3400 – SMBC not undertaken a localised traffic impact assessment.

Site HH1 suffers from flooding.

Other rural areas identified for limited expansion have more facilities (i.e. Doctor’s).

Pressure on Hockley Heath from Warwick and Stratford upon Avon developments.

Change to Plan:

Before demonstrating that exceptional circumstances exist to remove land from the greenbelt, SMBC needs to exhaust all Brownfield land use. Within Solihull, there remains a small number of brownfield sites that have not been taken forward for development due to isolation and infrastructure, but solutions need to be identified to overcome these and include them in the Plan before releasing undeveloped greenbelt.

Attention should also be given in the Plan to the exact location of medical services for residents in the proposed developments. Hockley Heath is located the furthest distance from any GP medical facilities than other rural areas in the Plan identified for expansion, all other proposed areas for development are within easy reach of Dr surgeries.

The Plan should also clearly state in detail the infrastructure available within the area. Hockley Heath does not have a bus service to Birmingham Monday – Saturday. The local bus service from Hockley Heath to neighbouring areas with a larger range of services is hourly. Development should take place in areas with a wider range of services and improved/frequent public transport links as opposed to more rural settlements with limited facilities/transport.

The Plan should detail the impact of the motorway network upon areas proposed for development. Hockley Heath is surrounded by both the M42 and the M40 and the village becomes heavily congested when issues on the motorway network arise. The village is also a designated diversion route for the motorway.

The Plan should provide details of improvements required along the canal network where developments are proposed adjacent to canals. Site HH1 would place additional pressure on the canal bridges, one of which needs repairing and would be likely to see an increase in vehicle traffic. Towpath improvements should also be detailed in the plan for developments that are likely to see an increase in towpath use due to their proximity to canals.

Due to a lack of services and infrastructure in Hockley Heath, and the flooding issues experienced in the village, site HH1 should not feature in the Plan.

Message from Solihull Council

Residents and businesses are being asked to make final representations about Solihull’s Draft Submission Plan during a formal six-week period, beginning on Friday 30 October, before it is submitted for independent examination.
The grounds for making a representation relate to the soundness and legal compliance of the Solihull’s Local Plan – Draft Submission Plan. Solihull’s Local Plan will guide the development of the borough for the next decade, and beyond. It is the basis for future planning decisions as it creates a ‘blueprint’ for when and where major developments can take place, and where they shouldn’t take place. Interested parties should make their representations via the Local Plan Review page https://www.solihull.gov.uk/lpr of the Council website. For this stage there is a formal way of sending in a representation, which is explained in a short video available on the same page, alongside guidance notes.

The representations received as part of this consultation will be included in the final Plan submitted for the ‘Examination in Public’ (EiP), which is the final scrutiny before a plan can be adopted. The EiP will be overseen by a nominated Inspector appointed on behalf of the Secretary of State. Once the examination concludes, the Inspector will issue a report which will summarise the findings of their examination. If the Plan is found to be sound and legally compliant, the Council will then be allowed to adopt the Plan, or the Inspector may suggest that the Plan is modified.
The representation period will close on Monday 14 December.

Councillor Andy Mackiewicz, Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Planning & Housing, said:
“We have now reached the stage where we must test whether people think our Draft Submission Plan is sound and legally compliant. “From the beginning we’ve put people and environment at the centre of the Plan.
“The Plan has been five years in the making. We have had three consultations, listened to people, engaged with local communities and businesses and received over 3,000 representations, and because of that we have amended it.
“It is now vital that as a Council we now move forward to get a Plan in place that will allow us to have control of deciding how development takes place in the future. “If we don’t, we leave ourselves at risk of planning by appeal, where developers go over our heads to government or planning inspectors. We need to control our destiny.
“We have strived to develop a Plan that will make Solihull a place that people will feel proud to live in, work in and invest in; which also addresses our climate change challenge.”

The six-week representation period opens on Friday 30 October 2020.People will be able to discuss the plan with Council officers at a number of virtual sessions which will take place in the coming weeks. More information on this will be provided in due course.

The Solihull Local Plan – Draft Submission Plan and relevant guidance can be viewed at https://www.solihull.gov.uk/lpr from Friday 30 October.

From 4th July 2020, the Government announced that outdoor playgrounds can reopen. The Parish Council of Hockley Heath has taken the decision to reopen the children’s play area on a trial basis from Monday 6th July 2020. There are a number of restrictions in place and it is essential that all visitors maintain social distance and follow the Government advice to reduce the spread of the Coronavirus. Signage will be placed in and around the play area detailing the restrictions as detailed below, please read the instructions before you choose to use the play area.

Please only use the play area if you feel it is safe to do so for yourself and your children. You will need to bring hand sanitiser with you.

BE COVID-19 AWARE WHEN USING THIS PLAY AREA

HYGIENE

Scientific advice suggests that the virus can survive for up to several days on some hard surfaces. These risks are reduced when outdoors, where surfaces may be subject to UV light and/or rain. However, coronavirus could survive long enough on frequently used/touched outdoor surfaces to facilitate transmission.

We ask that you protect yourselves and the community by using hand sanitiser before you enter the park and regularly throughout your stay and on leaving the park. Wash your hands thoroughly when you get home for 20 seconds with soap and water. We also encourage you or any child in your care to:

● not touch your face

● cough/sneeze into a tissue then sanitise your hands, remember to dispose safely of your tissue

● not to put your mouth on any equipment or put your hands in your mouth

● not eat or drink in this play area

Please place all litter including cleaning equipment, tissues, gloves and masks in the bins provided. If these bins are full then please take your rubbish home with you.

As the Parish Council is unable to clean this play area daily, please only permit the children in your care to use the equipment if you feel it is safe to do so. You can help your community by wiping down touch points on equipment that your child will be using with suitable hand sanitiser/cleaning wipes that are safe to touch for children and adults.

SOCIAL DISTANCING

Social distancing aims to reduce social interaction between people to minimise the opportunity for transmission of COVID-19. You should aim to keep 1m plus apart from anyone who is not a member of your household; 2m is preferred. This will mean that you need to:

● use the different entrance and exit points to the play area

● a maximum of 7 children in the play area at any one time, you may need to queue outside when busy

● during busy periods, play limited to ten minutes per family to allow others to use the play area (you may queue again to re-enter the play area)

● only have one adult supervising each family group – all children to be supervised

● wait at a distance until others have finished using the equipment – one family/household per individual equipment or bench

● choose equipment that allows for a minimum of 2m distance between users, such as leaving an empty swing between each child, unless they are members of the same household

● follow and adhere to all current government advice in addition to the above instructions

Thank you for your assistance during this difficult time, HHPC

UNFORTUNATELY, IF COVID-19 GUIDELINES TO REDUCE THE TRANSMISSION OF THE VIRUS CANNOT BE FOLLOWED IN THE PLAY AREA IT MAY LEAD TO CLOSURE.

During periods when the Parish Council is not able to publicly meet, planning consultations will be posted on the website and Facebook page.

If you have any comments on the planning application below please contact the Parish Clerk. You can also reply directly to SMBC via their planning portal if your prefer.

Application: PL/2020/00804/TPO

Location: 41 Lindhurst Drive

Expiry date: 11th May 2020

Works requested: Reduce canopy branches back by 25%, remove ivy growth and dead/rotten branches on 1 No. oak tree (T1 in TPO 873). Canopy is extending towards house, over drive and pedestrian access to property, causing concern in high winds. Base of tree has an exposed area believed due to Ivy growth. The tree therefore needs to be managed to reduce possibility of danger.