Object

Draft Local Plan - Supplementary Consultation

Representation ID: 7678

Received: 12/03/2019

Respondent: Hockley Heath Parish Council

Representation Summary:

No bus service to Birmingham and infrequent service to Solihull & Dorridge (approx every 45-60 mins).
Development represents 12% increase in village size with no infrastructure improvements.
Possibly 50 more homes with washed over areas.
No medical facilities near Hockley Heath.
Primary school cannot accomodate the number of children from 100-150 dwellings.
Congestion on A3400 (a bypass for M42/M40) leads to School Road being used as a short cut.
Regular flooding on School Road and A3400.
Poor water pressure.
Pockets of village with no access to fibre broadband.
BVP will increase traffic on School Road.

Full text:

The infrastructure within Hockley Heath is not sufficiently capable of supporting a development of this size; 100 homes is a 12% increase (approximately).

Paragraph 189 (p37) refers to regular bus services connecting Stratford and Birmingham. The X20 service terminates at Shirley and does not serve Birmingham. TfWM, following a consultation, has changed the bus service route and as such the service from Hockley Heath to Solihull and Dorridge station is effectively reduced to an hourly service due to timetabling, irrespective of this being a circular route. Access to rail services is limited; over 2 miles away.

Hockley Heath does not have a large range of shops and there are no medical facilities (Doctors or Pharmacy) within the Village.

The local primary school does not have the capacity to accommodate the potential numbers of children from 100-150 properties (should sites 49 and 328 also be released from the green belt).

The NP survey, published in June 2018, had 87% of respondents indicating it was very important for highway changes to School Road to prevent excessive vehicle use arising from additional Blythe Valley Park development (it was accepted that this will be used as a short-cut). This finding was in advance of any consultation associated with the release of green belt land on School Road. The A3400 is used as a diversion for both the M40 and M42 and as such Hockley Heath experiences frequent congestion along the A3400 and connecting routes, with School Road being used to bypass congestion on the A3400.

Hockley Heath, and specifically the A3400, suffers from regular ponding following even moderate sustained rainfall. HHPC is engaging with Severn Trent Water and SMBC Highways to identify improvement works across the entire system (from storm drains to river outlet) but there is clear evidence that the drainage infrastructure in the Village is struggling.

There are pockets of Hockley Heath which still do not have access to "super fast" broadband and there have been reports of poor water pressure in areas of the village reported by residents.