13 Shirley - South of Shirley

Objection to local new homes - protect local amenity land
I object to the proposed site at woodloes road/baxters green being considered for houses. This is a local recreation area. Building here will add more traffic, parking, overrun our schools & GP's with additional people. The recreation /green area available to local residents will be lost.
I would urge you to seek an alternative site.

My family live in Langcomb Road and I am very upset at the possible loss of 'countryside/greenbelt' between the rear of Langcomb Road and Dickens Heath.

When Dickens Heath was at the planning stage we were told that the two or three fields between the existing Shirley development and the new development was safe from future development and was seen as the minimum buffer zone required to maintain 'Dickens Heath' as a separate village.

The Draft development shows a tiny gap between the existing Langcomb Road housing and the proposed development which is impossible to call 'greenbelt' or buffer zone, at the present time there is a small aircraft runway on this area, so hardly an area that can be used for walking or recreation.

Also the land in question is currently used to grow Christmas trees, these absorb CO2 and give off oxygen, If all this land is used for housing the opposite will occur.

see attached letter

see attached letter received via email

see attached letter received via email

Housing development in Shirley
This morning I have walked from Bills Lane across the fields towards Miller and Carter down Tythe Barn Lane to the canal and then up to Highgate United Football club. During our walk we see notices to say that there are plans to build 600 new homes on these fields plus extra in Dickens Heath.

I would like to raise my objections about this on several different accounts.
* Where are these children going to go to school in two years time?
* How will the local doctors surgery cope with thousands of new patients?
* Where will the young people play football on Sunday morning? They cant all play at another local sports field. Especially as Highgate is also earmarked for development.
* Most importantly how on earth are our roads around Shirley going to cope with all of this extra traffic?
Please take these points into consideration.

Proposed Development site 13 Shirley South
I am dismayed at the proposed developments around the Shirley area and in particular this one. My concerns and objection to this are as follows:

Traffic

I take and collect my grandchildren to and from both Dickens Heath School and Woodlands Infants School. in addition I have just been trying to get to Sainsbury's in Shirley. The traffic is now beyond a joke. Before any further development around the area it is imperative that thought given to expansion and improvement of the road network. This CANNOT be left as it is.

Schools

I am aware that the schools in the area are oversubscribed and the 30 limit on pupil numbers has been scrapped leading to overcrowding in classes. This can only get worse with increased development. What is the council doing to prevent this happening? I really believe that the council just doesn't care about this.

Medical Facilities

How are you going to prevent waiting times for appointments etc increasing. What are your plans to prevent this given the increased development in the area?

Loss of Sports Facilities.

My wife and I walked from Bills lane to Tanworth Lane today and for a time watched hundreds of youngsters play in a football tournament at the club indicated on your plans. What plans have you for replacing this if the development goes ahead. This is further compounded by a number of other sports fields in the area having plans to be developed. I expect you would prefer the children in question to stay in and play on their xbox?

In summary before any further developments in and around this area the Council must at first address the infrastructure issues. Why don't you just do the right thing by Shirley and Shirley residents and make this area Parkland?

I look forward to your response.

I write this email to strongly object against the proposed development planned on South Shirley Site 13 on the Public Amenity Fields and corridor to Bills Lane in Council Plans for New Homes.

We live in 19 Stretton Road and purchased this property because this would be a quiet neighbourhood in Green Belt area.
Your proposal will directly negatively affect us and we strongly object on the following reasons:

1) We use the Fields to walk in every weekend and it is vital to our healthy living standard.
2) The traffic is already heavily congested in this area and the development of these new homes will make traffic impossible in an already bad situation. How are you planning to deal with the extra traffic as we are already struggling to get to the motorway in the mornings for work with the extra load of housing in Dickens Heath impacting on the roads? As we live on a road with fair amount of traffic it will disturb the peace as well as adding exponentially onto already long daily commute. Air and noise pollution from traffic would also increase.
3) We purchased our property specifically on the basis that it had a lot of vital Green Belt land in our area. We feel strongly that this should be preserved.
4) For all the reasons above, the value of our property would also decline as would be much less desirable for future buyers if we decide to move on.

We trust that you will take this into consideration and not pursue this project.

I am writing to put forward my strong objection to the proposed building of a large new housing estate across the fields beside Bills woods Christmas Tree Farm at the edge of Shirley.
I am a Shirley resident and I am very upset to think that our lovely local environment could be destroyed. I have 3 young boys and we frequently enjoy walks in our local countryside, which is in walking distance of our home near Bills woods. Spending time exploring our local environment, watching nature and enjoying the countryside surrounding us are the reasons that we moved to this part of Shirley. Being outside is of huge importance to our family and we can do this so easily at the moment. We are very fortunate to live next to a woods and then being able to walk through to some fields and large open spaces is a privilege considering that we live in an already very busy area on the edge of a massive, busy city.
The impact on the local environment will be huge, let alone the increase in traffic on an already ever busy road network. Another very big concern of mine is the impact on our local schools. It is already very stressful for people not knowing which secondary school their children will be sent to and with a large increase in population then this will become a big problem.
People I have spoken to about this are equally anxious and worried and we just hope that this building work cannot go ahead. It would be completely devastating for the people living in this part of the region, let alone I'm sure the many animals and plants thriving in the fields and hedgerows along the proposed sight.

I hope you are able to carefully consider my heart-felt objection.

I write objecting plans for housing off stretton road b90 on existing fields

My objection is on the basis of lack of services gps hospitals schooling leisure facilities and also the infrastructure to support

The plans also mean loss of further sports facilities which also along with other housing schemes planning to be built on football pitches outside dickens Heath is leaving very few fAcilities for young people

The loss of green space used but many residents of Shirley will ruin the area. The fields in question become water logged and have a stream and small lake which posses a risk of flooding but also removes this for wildlife there such as ducks geese and even the heron

Houses need everything else to support them our local schools are over subscribed some taking extra forms to accommodate kids at reception however senior schools already lack capacity without more kids from new unwanted houses. gps are full hospitals are full dentists are full already These things need addressed as a priority not wasted on more quickly poorly thrown up ugly housing.

I would like to object to the planning application to build on fields adjacent to Tanworth Lane, Shirley.

My daughter goes to Active Angels nursery which is going to be directly impacted by the plans as they will lose green space.

I have an older child born in 2011. I am already informed that this was a high birth year and there are insufficient secondary school places, it is a mistake to add to the local population when we cannot provide services for the existing residents.

It is already a population dense area, adding to this puts pressure on roads, health care and the road network.

My children took part in Birdwatch this weekend and were delighted to see an array of wildlife in their immediate vicinity. This will undoubtedly be negatively impacted by building on green space. Please reconsider the plans to build new estates in this part of Shirley as it will be detrimental to the whole community.

I have heard that the majority of Solihull's new homes are going to be built on Shirley green space. Shirley park is not vast, the fields and football pitches serve the local community. It does not make sense to increase the population and reduce the facilities available at the same time.

Objection to South Shirley Amenity Land development
To whom it may concern,

We live close to the planned development and I would like to register an objection on two main grounds;

1. Traffic; the current weight of traffic in rush hour is unsustainable going forward with car ownership projected to continue to increase. Without significant infrastructure investment, school morning traffic in particular would become almost impossible - and with no obvious alternative to the Stretton Road / Tanworth Lane / Blackford Road / Dog Kennel Lane routes.

2. The clear change the housing would bring to what is currently the southernmost point of the Birmingham conurbation. The current semi rural environment and easy access to countryside would be removed from thousands of local residents, many of whom chose the area for exactly the reason that such an environment was available to them. There must surely be alternative sites impacting less on existing residents.

I do understand the need for housing and despite the fact that we would miss the countryside I can see that houses must be built somewhere. However, I am very concerned about additional traffic and its impact on the safety of motorists, pedestrians and schoolchildren in the mornings. That and the and irrevocable change to the environment must be considered before taking such an irreversible step.

Thank you for your time in reading this objection. I would appreciate being kept informed of the progress of this application.

We have viewed the local draft plan and are very concerned that the open space at the back of Langcomb road Baxters Road and Woodloes Road should be retained. Local residents bought houses in this area knowing that we can walk our dogs & play with our children in this open space keeping us happy and healthy.

If a development is to be built in this area it is so important to us that there is a clear barrier in the form of open space leading through to the local canal between existing houses and any new development.

I wish to lodge my strong objections to the proposed building over the green belt land from Tanworth Lane and across to Bills Woods.

The people of South Shirley have had to endure the erection of Dickens Heath (town) and this has increased in size by stealth with new phases being continually added on.

The traffic is now at horrendous levels during early morning and evening.
The line of traffic extends from the junction at the top end of Tanworth Lane all the way past Stretton Road and sometimes down to my own house at number 96 as the traffic travelling along from Dickens Heath is virtually nonstop. Once we make it onto the Stratford road off Dog Kennel Lane, the traffic is backed up both ways on the approach from and to the M42.
On an evening the traffic then backs up all along Dog Kennel Lane back to the Stratford Road.

How can a sane person think that building even more housing in our area is going to be sustainable within any proposed infrastructure?

Why does this council think that it's acceptable to pen us in even further in South Shirley when there are green belt sites around the Dorridge/Knowle and other areas? Would this be because perhaps the South Shirley population on the whole probably does not have the money, power, influence or status as some Dorridge residents may be deemed to have? Why are we, and our children thought of as not needing the afforded 'luxury' of some accessible clean air as residents in other parts of the Borough?
This smacks of discrimination in my view.

We have so much traffic travelling around us that they only respite we have for our families, within walking distance, is the exact place you have proposed to now take away from us. We would have to get into a car to get some fresh air, which is kind of ironic as it clearly all adds on to the problems we have regarding traffic.

It's vital to both young and older people's, physical and mental wellbeing to have open, pollution free spaces within which to escape to.

We hear that builders, counsellors and relevant landowners between them have already made up their minds to do this and this is shameful.

Yes, new housing will need to be built but why oh why concentrate it on South Shirley once again??

see attached letter

see attached letter

see attached letter

Comments on draft local plan impacting on Shirley South
Comments re proposed new housing between Whitlock's End farm and Dickens Heath Road:

Our main concern is the loss of available public amenity land adjacent to Woodloes Road, Baxters Green and the Badgers Estate. This land has been enjoyed by locals for many years and if you consider Shirley as a whole there is little open land to the south. Shirley Park has diminished in size and is some distance away. If this public amenity were lost then no similar open space would exist until that at the other side of Dickens Heath leading onto Braggs Farm Lane. This is a valuable breathing space both well used and a buffer between this part of South Shirley and the ever developing Dickens Heath.

At this current time it is difficult to comment on problems of added road congestion as the proposals on the local infrastructure have not been detailed. However, local roads will have to feed into the current road system which is already under pressure from increased housing on Dickens Heath. This will require detailed consideration in the area of Bills Lane, Haslucks Green Road, Shakespeare Drive and Stratford Road.

It is unlikely the above will be alleviated by the public transport system as current park and ride systems are over subscribed. In an era of tight public expenditure controls additional funding for such schemes is unlikely to be forthcoming even if the valuable resource of land were made available.

We hope these comments will be noted when further consideration is given to the local plan.

proposed housing on green belt
I have read the latest hand-delivered letter re: possible development sites in Shirley. While I understand the need for extra housing, this area has already been developed some years ago. I moved here to one of the many bungalows in this area after being driven around the area three years ago. I chose the area because of the lovely fields and green spaces. It is lovely and quiet. Along with any more houses I am sure there would be a need for other schools so it would not stop at the extra housing. Also there would probably be a need for another doctors surgery to cope with the extra residents. We do not want a green "corridor", we want fields to walk through unrestricted by roofs etc. Then there is the wildlife to consider. Shirley park has already lost trees and some of the land to the Parkgate development.

Objection to South Shirley Site 13
Solihull Councils current consultation proposing 600 additional homes on the South Shirley Site 13 adjacent to the Woodlands & Badgers Estate
I wish to raise an objection and voice my concern to the proposed housing site.
As a child growing up in Shirley and now as a parent of two young children, this is an area that I have used regularly for recreation purposes. The walkway from Bills Lane is our access point, and from here we can access the fields behind Langcomb Road and the Woodlands estate. It is a beautiful place to walk and get away from traffic, and an opportunity to see lots of wildlife - particularly birds. The area is extensively used by local residents to walk, walk their dogs, and also to join onto the canal tow path.
The loss of this area would greatly sadden me, and many others. The loss of green belt land which would see the already narrow gap between Shirley and Dickens Heath once again diminished.
Over the years Shirley has become heavily built up, and open space areas for the public to use for recreation purposes are very limited.
As I understand, this particular area of land was actually designated as an area of public amenity and was fenced off accordingly.
I would also like to raise concerns about the current levels of traffic. At 9am there is no easy access to the Stratford Rd and onwards, Tanworth Lane is already loaded with traffic. More houses, more people - the implications for added traffic are alarming.
And what about schools, my eldest (5 years old) is fortunate to attend Woodlands School, a wonderful small community school. Where will the additional children go? Woodlands is a feeder school for Shirley Heath, as is Blossomfield which has a already had to grow into a 3 form entry to cater for all the children. Looking ahead 7 years, where will all these extra children find secondary school provision?
Another concern would be Healthcare provision, more doctors surgeries would surely be required? Solihull Hospital is slowly being made smaller and smaller, whilst the population gets bigger and bigger.
In summary, l accept (but do not agree) that Solihull council have by charged by central government with finding new housing sites. However I feel very strongly that it would be wrong to build on the area of public amenity land and its access corridor that is currently fenced off and request that this area is retained for the benefit of existing and future local residents. The large amount of development being concentrated in the countryside and loss of Green Belt in the Shirley area is unacceptable.

Representations regarding the draft local plan for Shirley/Solihull
Please note the comments below as my own submissions:

I am concerned that the draft local plan for additional housing is centred almost entirely on Shirley - and the area of Shirley linking Bills Lane to Cheswick Green and beyond.
The plan looks to develop the existing green space near Baxter's Road/Woodloes Road as well as some of the Christmas Tree Farm.

This green space is much-used by residents as it is the only land of its type in the area, and provides much needed recreational space for children, dog walkers, walkers, cyclists and nature-lovers. The space was set aside specifically for residents when those two areas were built-on.
I am completely opposed to the destruction of this amenity.

Doctors, Schools and road systems are already heavily overloaded or over-subscribed and there can be a great deal of doubt over whether the local road systems would cope.
It can already take 30 minutes to drive from the Bills Lane area to the M42 junction because of the existing levels of traffic - and the Shirley/Cheswick Green roads would become impossible - and unsafe - if these developments were to go ahead.

Finally, Shirley residents feel that we are being "dumped-on" when there are no plans for the Catherine De Barnes, Knowle or Dorridge areas where space is more readily available. This is completely unfair seeing as there are already developments in Aqueduct Road/Solihull Lodge and the Powergen site.

Please add my voice to any opposition to the proposals in their current form.

Allocation 13 Shirley Woods Farm
I would like to strongly advise the planning department that using all our greenbelt to put houses on is not always a great idea, what about using the space we already have and making it more liveable? There are more places that can be made into homes that using our precious greenbelt.

I have lived in Shirley for 46 years and moved to the edge of Shirley mainly to be closer to nature, I live not far from Bills woods on Kingshurst Road, I use the Bills lane entrance to walk my dogs take in the views and nature. Never thought that it would ever come to having to fill a petition and send and email, in the hope that planning see sense and do not grant planning permission for houses to be build. This not only will put strain on our roads that are already full because of Asda and Aqueduct road houses on Colebrook road. putting strain on the schools which are up to maximum over subscribed!

There is the impact on Wildlife and the need to keep these places free from tarmac simply because of the impact on wildlife the animals, that have lived there for years. We all need space away from traffic, houses and people. To take our rights away is wrong, The greenbelt area is a vital community amenity and vital to the identity of local settlements.

All that planning are doing is filling in the gaps, soon there will be no beginning and no end, and no room for wildlife. We as humans have an impact on wildlife, they cannot speak for themselves. Introducing human construction is a disturbance on the environment and because of the use of green belt various animal species will be threatened and the ecological balance of nature will cause a massive impact to the environment. We need these open spaces! for many reasons.

It was with great sadness that I read of the plans to build a large number of new homes around Solihull.
I am particularly concerned about Allocation 13 which I understand is the proposed site for 600 new homes.
600 homes could potentially bring 2000+ new residents. These residents would need access to already overstretched resources. Have considerations been made for their need for Doctor's Surgeries, Dentists and school places? Our primary schools are already heavily oversubscribed. Have considerations been made for the potential extra input on the Emergency Services? How about Maternity Services in the borough? Our local hospital has already been downgraded to the point where it seems to be a glorified GP surgery. Maternity services in the borough are shameful. I am a lifelong resident and was 5 minutes away from having my son in Heartlands Hospital car park. I was the last person they allowed in and then they closed the Maternity Unit as they were over capacity. I know you have no control over the NHS but I do think you need to be responsible when adding extra pressures on to it at a time when all medical and emergency services are overstretched.
I feel that Solihull Council are being led by greed and are being short sighted about the impact of these new homes on the existing residents. Solihull is special thanks to the fact it has green spaces and woodland. It was always known as Urbs in Rure, the town in the country. If you start building on all of these green spaces then we will become another faceless town of new builds.
Thank you for taking the time to read my concerns.

I am strongly Against the proposed planning by Solihull Council for the house development for the Shirley, Dickens Heath and Majors Green Area. I feel it will be very damaging for the area and the people who live and will be living there in the future . There are roads which aren't much more than lanes in some parts, some with narrow footpath and pedestrians have to step into the road to pass each other. I myself have been hit twice by vehicles wing mirrors in Haslucks Green road by vehicles moving over to avoid traffic coming the other way. The roads in peak time is very heavily used and there has been several bad accidents recently at Bills Lane, Haslucks Green Road, Rushleigh Road ,Cambria Drive and Whitlock End Station Bend, fortunately up till now not a fatal one. I feel the area is being over developed by property developers who will cram as many house as they can into the area and Solihull Council who see green fields as £ signs.
Schools, Doctors, Hospitals and other services & amenities are stretched now. Will they be able to cope with an increased the population. Are there Plans to improve these services and facilities .

Save our fields!! Allocation 13
I am very distressed about the draft local development plan between Whitlock's End Farm and Dickens Heath Road, Allocation 13.

Having a young family who thrive off outdoor life, enjoying nature and educating our young, as well as healthy living through both exercising and walking, I am deeply concerned for the large amount of development being concentrated in our local countryside and the loss of Green Belt in the Shirley area and the narrow strip of open space that will separate Shirley from Dickens Heath which is also extending towards Shirley. I am a regular dog walker and keen runner and use the local fields and bridal path for all purposes to exercise and walk the dog on a very regular basis, as well as enjoying our weekly family walks from Neville Road to the proposed allocation 13, having our very own green belt land to enjoy, was the very reason why we bought our house.

We have lived in this area for many years and are a regular user of the walkway from Bills Lane crossing into the fields behind Langcomb Road and the Woodlands Estate and know this has been extensively used by many residents in the area for recreation purposes throughout the year. We have a beautiful chocolate Labrador who we socialise on a regular basis in this area with many other dog walkers, who also do the same.

I understand that the council have to find housing sites but feel very strongly that it would be wrong to build on the area of public amenity land and its access corridor that is currently fenced off and request that this area is retained for the benefit of existing and future local residents.

Shirley is already heavily built up and has a low level of open space that is usable and convenient for public recreation and I'm very concerned about how the large number of new homes will add to existing traffic congestion, plus noise pollution that comes with it and a massive increase co2 emissions, of which as a nation we are trying to reduce, not increase. Our doctors and local schools are already filled to capacity, access to these are already tight, how on earth would they be able to cope with a massive influx of people you are proposing to bring to the area? It would only outstretch services even more than what they are currently, which would surely drop standards of care all round.

l am emailing you on behalf of my young family to give our objections to your proposals to build a large housing estate on our local fields in south Shirley.

We have lived in the local area for three year and one of the main attractions to this area was the easy access to local open spaces. So as you can imagine, we are very, very sad and upset to learn of the Solihull's proposals.

Whilst we appreciate that the council has been directed by central government to have a five year housing plan, we feel that the sheer volume of the new housing development that is proposed near us is far too high. Therefore we would like to question why other areas seem to have "ring fenced " and be exempt from such a huge volume of development.

l shall firstly discuss

1. TRAFFIC

If we look at the current road network, our local roads struggle every morning with congestion. Tamworth lane is extremely busy at rush hour and on any one week day morning, commuters can be queuing past the entrance for the allotment to pull out onto dog kennel lane. lt is common sense that building a large new housing estate Will create MORE congestion. Almost every dwelling will have at least one car and probably two or three. lf we multiple these figures by the number of houses proposed surely this is just going to cause more traffic, more pollution and more accidents on the road!

AIR POLLUTION
Has any thought been given to increase air pollution?
Shouldn't the government be looking at aiming to decrease local air pollution???

2. PRESSURE ON LOCAL SERVICES

GP SURGERIES : We already struggle to get an appointment at our Medical (GP) surgery. Where are all the proposed new residents going to register for medical services? surely our surgery would not have the capacity to take any more patients without it having a detrimental affect on its current client group. So will local residents suffer ?

EDUCATION :
Our children attend woodlands primary school. The reception year is oversubscribed and again the school does not have the funding to expand and to take more children. Where will all these new residents children attend school or does the council have plans to build services especially for new residents?

3.WILDLIFE

Has any thought been given to the affect on our local wildlife?
It is truly shocking to think of all the animals and creatures that live in our local fields losing their natural habitats and/or dying out locally because of this proposal.

how will we educate our children about being responsible, caring adults who care and RESPECT local wildlife, if we let the council build on the only local fields we have , wildlife will disappear ? Is the council proud of its plans to kill local natural habitats?

This is 2017 , we know how much damage man has done to the earth already , please don't do it here !

4. MENTAL HEALTH

Lastly I want to talk about the mental health of the residents of this area. There is a lot of research that talks about the benefits of exercise and outdoor activity on ones mental health.

Public heath England , improving access to green open spaces (2014) states " There is significantly and growing evidence on the health benefits of good quality open green spaces. The benefits include self-rated health, lower body mass index, improved mental health and longevity. " The paper states " local authorities play a Vital role in protecting , maintaining and improving green space". It is evident that if residents have good mental health and well being the demand for health services will be lower hence less pressure on the NHS.

lf all the proposed site is cleared and made into a concrete jungle, all the local residents , children and their pets may well suffer from poorer mental health.
Why cant we as adults protect this area for the next generation?

PROPOSAL:

We appreciate that Solihull housing has to submit a draft plan to the government of their local five year housing plan and if you do not, developers have more right to appeal. So whilst I oppose this plan to build IN MY BACK YARD AND WOULD LIKE TO STOP ALL PROPOSALS TO BUILD HERE, I recognise this is unrealistic.

Therefore I propose that the council reconsiders exactly where they are going to build.

l would like to see the first two fields that face the housing on the woodlands estate to be left alone in their natural state. So the natural beauty of the area can be maintained, wildlife can continue to live there in their current undisturbed state and local residents, their children and dogs can continue to enjoy the fields.

Furthermore, I am aware that the laws on GREEN BELT LAND are changing to suit government policy but if we look at the original aim of the policy to "CONTROL URBAN GROWTH AND TO PREVENT URBAN SPRAWL by keeping land permanently open, and consequently the most important attribute of green belt is their openness". Surely this proposed development would be urban sprawl, would not be welcome by the current residents and would ruin a beautiful area of open space and countryside. So we can protect the area for future generations of our children and their children and wildlife.
my children are very upset about this prospect, don't ruin this lovely area,

The road systems ( tanworth lane, dog kennel lane, dickens heath road & stratford road) can not cope with traffic as it stands already & is often grid locked in rush hour, the impact any further housing / traffic would have i cannot imagine. this area of fields is also home to a lot of wild life i.e deer, ducks, woodpecker, cuckoo, pheasant, etc. its also some of the only green space left for dog walking / recreation, plus a bridle path runs along side it which i use on my horse regularly.

I strongly oppose the plans to build on allocation 13, woodlands area.
This is a beautiful part of our town and used by many people as a recreation area, not to mention the amount of wildlife that reside there too.
New homes would cause immense stress on the local area roads, schools and amenities. We moved to the area last year and were unable to get our son into the local school we chose due to over subscription. In a heavily populated area already, I do not think adding more homes is the best answer.

I am a home owner at Shotteswell Road, Shirley, and I would like to voice my objection in regards to the proposed 600 homes at allocation 13. I do not believe that we have the necessary infrastructure in place to support such a huge increase in population. On top of that I do not feel that current beautiful piece of land should be used for housing. The land should continue in its present state and be open to the public.

Housing allocation 13 South Shirley
I strongly object to the development on this site for the following reasons Extra traffic on already busy roads and at junctions Inadequate doctor facilities Ever decreasing green belt between Dickens Heath and Shirley South