Question 19 - Infrastructure Requirements at Hockley Heath

School road is already congested at school pick up and drop off and there isn't enough parking around the school. The area can not accommodate further development on school road and the school as it stands cannot take the extra children that the development could bring.

see attached representation

Nurton Developments considers it important that the local community identifies the priorities in terms of infrastructure requirements at Hockley Heath. As such, Nurton Developments undertook a community consultation exercise in September 2017 in order to seek the views of the local community regarding proposals for development of Site 25, Land south of School Road, Hockley Heath. For the purposes of the consultation, to give the site a recognisable local identity, the site was named 'Sadlers Covey'. Around 80 people attended the consultation event and feedback was also submitted via the consultation website - www.sadlers-covey.co.uk. A summary of the consultation feedback is attached and sets out Nurton Developments' commitments to address issues raised by the local community.

The consultation feedback summary identifies that school-related parking, highway safety and volume of traffic on School Road were the main issues raised. As such Nurton Developments would agree that there is an infrastructure requirement to improve safety on School Lane, taking into account the cumulative volume of traffic generated, with particular regard to issues with parking at school pick-up and drop-off times. Nurton Developments has already commissioned transport consultants to undertake investigations of these issues. A parking demand survey has been undertaken and this has identified options for parking provision and road safety enhancements on School Lane that could be provided in conjunction with the residential development. This survey work is part of the ongoing transport assessment and masterplanning process and will be reported to the Council in due course. However at this time Nurton Developments can say that solutions will be put forward to address this infrastructure requirement.

Capacity at the local primary school was also raised as an issue in the community consultation. Nurton Developments has investigated this further in liaison with the Hockley Heath Academy and intends to invest in the infrastructure required to accommodate the additional pupils generated by the development of Site 25, either through s106 or Community Infrastructure Levy 'contribution in kind'. Options for expansion on, and potential improvements to the layout of, the school site are being explored and consideration is also being given to school-related development on Site 25.

No doubt the local community will raise a number of infrastructure requirements in response to this Local Plan consultation. We would refer you to the attached consultation feedback summary where many requirements have been noted and are to be dealt with. We would be happy to consider the further infrastructure requirements raised through this consultation.

I agree there is currently a lot of congestion on School Rd during the drop off/ pick up times, however, I can't see how further development on School Rd is going to help that. The road is not the widest with no footpath to one side. I fail to see how 100 so homes can be built on this land, have a driveway for all and a footpath be built. Surely more development would lead to any further congestion. This will also impact those walking to the school. The cars already come down School road at speed, possibly cutting through to get to Stratford with what I feel is little regard for the children. Adding more homes would mean more cars and more likely to lead to an accident.

Although more money would be given to the Parish Council there would be more people in the area requiring services so i fail to see how this will better the area. At present the area has a one form entry school, which is usually overscribed and so children are turned away. Building more houses is likely to mean more children looking for a place at the school. I don't see how the school will cope with this, nor would I want to see the school change to accommodate this. At present with all the children being in the same class there is a sense of community within their little network. I believe this gives the children the confidence they need to succeed at the school, as they are always around their friends and so are happy.

No I do no agree. Plans were submitted before a few years ago for this land and it was rejected due to the inadequate infrastructure in this area. Nothing has been added or changed so why all of a sudden is our infrastructure suitable for this piece of land? SCHOOL ROAD IS A NARROW DANGEROUS ROAD particularly as there is a Primary School right next to this. 100+ homes will generate substantial increase in school numbers and the school will not be able to expand to meet these needs, particularly after 900 homes have been build just down the road.

No I do not agree. The road is not suitable for more developments with young children using it. Also Blythe Valley will be using it once the 900 homes go up. Totally lacking in infrastructure can not cope

The infrastructure within HH is not sufficiently capable of supporting a development of this size due to a lack of facilities such as shops and there is no medical facility. There is a density of housing already in the village which leads to congestion and pollution issues.

It's green belt land, not enough local shops , schools, doctors. Too much traffic in Hockley Heath

Infrastructure Requirements:
School parking problem
I agree that the issue of school parking needs to be addressed. As additional houses are built this problem can only can worse and the addition of extra double yellow lines just causes some people to ignore them. Solutions are needed that provide options for people to do the right thing rather than forcing them to do the wrong thing. The school is successful at attracting pupils from outside the area and these people will arrive by car and so they do need to park somewhere. They will search for a parking place on the local housing estates which is as close to the school as possible.
Congestion Solution: Adding new infrastructure to enable "park and walk" around the village
If the receipts from CIL could be used to create a car park on land that is as close as possible to the school and the centre of the village with a network of new attractive paths, walkways and crossings to enable people to walk safely to and from the school, the park, the shops, existing and proposed housing and pubs an alternative model is created for local people to walk around the village and out of area car drivers to park and walk. This may need to be accompanied by residents only parking schemes on residential roads. This has the potential to reduce congestion at school pick up / drop off and also incentivises walking around the village i.e. encouraging an active lifestyle.
Inadequate Local Transport is also a problem
Non-drivers, particularly the young and the elderly, have a very poor service for accessing local towns for retail and other services and transport hubs for longer distance travel. Large budget solutions are not financially feasible for a small village and so solutions need to focus on how small changes to the village infrastructure can help.
Transport Solution: Enhance and expand the network of paths and cycle routes
Walking and cycling need to have a much higher priority to enable people to get around the village and to other local areas. Beyond the network of paths, walkways and crossings for walking and cycling around the village there needs to be longer distance walking and cycling routes to Dorridge (by upgrading current rights of way to paths and cycle routes) and to Earlswood and Lapworth (by upgrading the towpath on the canal to all weather walking and cycling routes). These walking and cycling routes provide access to the rail network in these areas and again support an active lifestyle.

Future Transport Solution for non-drivers: facilities for autonomous vehicles
Autonomous taxis will provide a new class of transport that should be economical and convenient for non-drivers. These vehicles will need to park near where they need to be used so that they can quickly be called when a resident needs transport. It is important that these vehicles do not take up all the existing parking spots in the village as this will exacerbate school congestion and will block parking for local shops and services. A new car park or autonomous-taxi rank needs to be found for these vehicles so that they can benefit residents transport needs but not block up street parking. If this technology works well it may become popular to use these services instead of owning a car in which case volumes of these autonomous taxis could be huge. Again, the solution is to create a new parking area near the village and implement resident only parking and short duration parking for shops and other services that have temporary parking. The council can work with providers of these vehicles or even provide some itself to meet the local needs. These vehicles would return to the designated parking area after being used and then when called would drive to pick up the passenger from their home or other location. They would also drop off at home or other location and then return to their designated parking area. The technology for this solution is not yet available but it will come and the village infrastructure needs to be ready to embrace it.

No just 100% no. I dont want our lovely village turned into a large town. We have a beautiful quiet semi rural village we dont need more houses here taking away the beautiful countryside. Our little school and roads wont cope.

Stratford road through the village already gets very congested during rush hour and when there are issues with the M40 and M42. The school has limited space for expansion to cope with a big increase in the number of children. There are no nearby secondary schools and limited bus services for those reliant on public transport. There is not a doctors surgery in the village.

There isn't enough infrastructure in the village to support the people we already have, never mind more! The school is full, there isn't a senior school for miles, there isn't a train station, the bus routes are limited, we do not have a doctor's surgery or pharmacy, and only have one dentist, that needs at least 6 weeks advance booking. More houses would be chaos.

The village needs to be protected in order to keep the quality of life for residents

Parking already an issue.

The development is an unnecessary expansion of a village which has retained its character due to the Greenbelt which surrounds it.

Should the development go ahead, School road will become more hazardous than it is presently to pedestrians & in particular children, in addition to road users around the area of Hockley Heath Academy during school drop off & collection times.

In addition, the current infrastructure of the village is insufficient to support the addition of yet more homes.

No more development around hockley heath. The roads are not built to support such a large volume of traffic and the homes that are already being built at Blythe valley will compound this issue. There are already a number of concerns with lack of infrastructure such as no doctors etc.

Parking on School Road at school drop off and pick up times is already making it difficult to exit and enter driveways next to School Rd. School Road is narrow and it is hazardous trying to pull out of our driveway (we live 2 doors from the school directly opposite the proposed site) . It is extremely difficult to see past parked cars as we pull out of our driveway and always have to reverse onto our drive as it would be dangerous to try and reverse out. Parking restrictions are needed along the road.

Congestion at the school is only part of the problem. School Road is in a dangerous condition which will get worse if more houses are built there. Blythe Valley homes will bring more traffic. Site 25 will produce more. New telephone exchange needed. Larger school required. Drainage and water supplies will require upgrade if more houses built in School Road. Doctors needed.

Hockley Heath is beauty small village. The area around school road should remain clear of new build due to the school being so close. The school is also at maximum capacity in my opinion and adding more spaces will be a detriment to the education our children receive.
The build will also take away the beautiful green land which is home to wildlife and make Hockley Heath the beautiful village it is. I do not agree with this plan.

The land south of school road should not be considered as allocated site. That area is beautiful and green and should not be used to build on. Hockley Heath is a thriving small village. More homes would also mean pressure on the school to provide spaces. Current students will suffer as the ratio between students and teachers will increase making their education tougher
Hockley Heath is a beautiful small village and will not thrive from a development that big. The school is already at capacity, with adding more children, the children who already go there will suffer academically due to more children against one teacher.
I also oppose due to the building taking away the beautiful greenery we have in the village which is home to wildlife. I strongly oppose the building work.

The Hockley Heath Residents Association do not consider that this is a complete list of infrastructure requirements for Hockley Heath, either for the current level of residents or for the settlement in the future. There are a number of key matters that have been omitted, including:

Highways issues on School Road - as raised by us during the Blythe Valley consultation, there is already an issue with volume and speed of vehicles using School Road. The speed outside the primary school is 30mph and should be reduced to 20 mph in accordance with other schools area. Vehicles reach inappropriate speeds throughout the length of the road and given the nature of the road (being a small, almost single lane in places) the volume and type of vehicle using the road needs to be addressed through highways changes. This is all prior to the inevitable increase in traffic following the various Blythe Valley developments. And before considering site 25 land south of School Road. In our recent residents survey (part of the Neighbourhood Plan process) 87% of respondents indicated that it was very important for highway changes to be made to School Road to prevent excessive vehicle use.

Drainage - There are significant issues with road flooding throughout Hockley Heath particularly on the main A3400 Stratford Road, but also in parts of School Road. Investigations are ongoing but it would appear that the main drains are not adequate for the current load.

Transport & connectivity - para 189 describes Hockley Heath as having "regular bus services". Following the recent review of bus services, our services have been significantly reduced. As of February 2019, The X20 service which serves Hockley Heath will terminate at Shirley and not extend to Birmingham. The local service, connecting Hockley Heath to Solihull and Dorridge, has been reduced to an hourly service and does not tie in with train times from Dorridge. In addition, without consulting, the service no longer extends to Knowle meaning additional arrangements have had to be put in place to provide a service that allows children to travel to Arden Academy in Knowle and to connect residents to a better range of facilities in Knowle (nearest library and banks).

Limited facilities - Hockley Heath has very few facilities in the village. There are few "useful" shops, and the Post Office is due to close in 2019 (it should not therefore be included in the local plan). There is no doctors surgery, no pharmacy and no ATM. The convenience store is very small and cannot accommodate pushchairs or wheelchairs.

School Parking and safety - The consultation document mentions school parking but we do not consider that it would be appropriate for this to be provided on the other side of School Road as part of the proposed development of site 25 (due to the issues outlined in Highways para above). Significant additional road crossings would need to be put in place to ensure the safety of our children and parents.

School capacity - Hockley Heath Academy is a small, one form entry school. It forms the heart of the community and exists to serve the needs of the communities families. Following the most recent intake application for nursery and reception places, the school classes will be full meaning no additional spaces will be available to new developments without displacing some existing Hockley Heath children.

I do not consider that this is a complete list of infrastructure requirements for Hockley Heath, either for the current level of residents or for the settlement in the future. There are a number of key matters that have been omitted, including:

Highways issues on School Road - as raised by many residents during the Blythe Valley consultation, there is already an issue with volume and speed of vehicles using School Road. The speed outside the primary school is 30mph and should be reduced to 20 mph in accordance with other schools area. Vehicles reach inappropriate speeds throughout the length of the road and given the nature of the road (being a small, almost single lane in places) the volume and type of vehicle using the road needs to be addressed through highways changes. This is all prior to the inevitable increase in traffic following the various Blythe Valley developments. And before considering site 25 land south of School Road. In our recent residents survey (part of the Neighbourhood Plan process) 87% of respondents indicated that it was very important for highway changes to be made to School Road to prevent excessive vehicle use.

Drainage - There are significant issues with road flooding throughout Hockley Heath particularly on the main A3400 Stratford Road, but also in parts of School Road. Investigations are ongoing but it would appear that the main drains are not adequate for the current load.

Transport & connectivity - para 189 describes Hockley Heath as having "regular bus services". Following the recent review of bus services, our services have been significantly reduced. As of February 2019, The X20 service which serves Hockley Heath will terminate at Shirley and not extend to Birmingham. The local service, connecting Hockley Heath to Solihull and Dorridge, has been reduced to an hourly service and does not tie in with train times from Dorridge. In addition, without consulting, the service no longer extends to Knowle meaning additional arrangements have had to be put in place to provide a service that allows children to travel to Arden Academy in Knowle and to connect residents to a better range of facilities in Knowle (nearest library and banks).

Limited facilities - Hockley Heath has very few facilities in the village. There are few "useful" shops, and the Post Office is due to close in 2019 (it should not therefore be included in the local plan). There is no doctors surgery, no pharmacy and no ATM. The convenience store is very small and cannot accommodate pushchairs or wheelchairs.

School Parking and safety - The consultation document mentions school parking but we do not consider that it would be appropriate for this to be provided on the other side of School Road as part of the proposed development of site 25 (due to the issues outlined in Highways para above). Significant additional road crossings would need to be put in place to ensure the safety of our children and parents.

School capacity - Hockley Heath Academy is a small, one form entry school. It forms the heart of the community and exists to serve the needs of the communities families. Following the most recent intake application for nursery and reception places, the school classes will be full meaning no additional spaces will be available to new developments without displacing some existing Hockley Heath children.

With the proposed parking solution this does not solve the problem with the children as they will have to cross School Road to get to school.
School Road is mainly a very narrow lane with no edges/Kerb stone and pavements. The tarmac has just set where it fell leaving huge pot holes on either side. These cannot be seen until you fall into them, bollards have been in place for a year with no action leaving a very dangerous situation. Proving the road can't cope at present and could not cope with additional traffic.

See attached letter

HH does NOT have the infrastructure or services needed. There is no doctors, pharmacy or many daily use shops. The primary school itself does not have the capacity to take on the extra children from 100+ houses (-150 properties should sites 49 and 328 also be released from the green belt) and this puts the level of education at risk for the current pupils. The infrastructure of school road alone is not up to par. The road is much to narrow to accommodate such a load of traffic and children would be in grave danger as it is already a road that people speed up. Traffic is already set to increase drastically on school road with the BlytheV

The current infrastructure in the village is lacking already and cannot sustain an increased population of 12%.Flooding is an issue on the A3400, traffic from the motorway network and cut throughs via School Road has turned these roads into mini by passes; water pressure is an issue for houses on Blackberry Avenue as well as major flooding in the fields; inadequate shops for anything but a small village; the school is over subscribed, the site lacks the room to support an additional intake. Bus services are poor and irregular and no specific medical surgeries support the village.

Proposals for residential site 25 in Hockley Heath is allocated within green belt land.
No proposals given for additional places at local primary or secondary schools for children.
No consideration has been given to main services to proposed housing, including electricity, gas, water supply, mains drainage, telecommunications.

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

Please see covering letter

- additional traffic along School Road which was never designed for such volume
- congestion is already bad around the Hockley Heath Academy and clearly unsafe for children
- the junction at School Road / Stratford Road is already congested and dangerous at peak times
- School Road is already used as a 'cut through' with regular unchecked speeding
- School Road is a regular cycle route and increased traffic will increase the risk to them
- the ongoing sizeable Blythe Valley development will potentially increase the use of School Road as a short cut

To a certain extent, yes.
Whilst development is limited by the Borough boundary, it is important to work with neighbouring authorities to ensure any expansion remains proportionate and coherent. One sided development has the potential to disturb the coherence of the settlement.