Misrepresentation #1 - It's a brownfield site

Andrew Taylor, Countryside Properties' Director and Head of Planning, said "Bourn Airfield is a large brownfield site... it is more appropriate to use those sort of sites for the housing we desperately need rather than build on true green fields, agricultural fields that are around the area". So good to know that Countryside Properties don't consider that building on such sites is appropriate - we just need them to recognise that this exactly what Bourn Airfield is. (The government, according to its own criteria, recognises that Bourn Airfield is not a brownfield site - see here).  In fairness to Countryside Properties they didn't choose the site but they certainly are capitalising on its inclusion in the Local Plan to further their commercial interests.

​Misrepresentation #2 - It's only 6 miles to Cambridge centre

This kind of disingenuous communication was heard with reference to the transport and traffic problems that are a major concern.  Mr Taylor brushed these aside by saying that people would get to work via the proposed new busway, despite the fact that fewer than 10% of local residents currently take the bus to work. He also stated that "it's only 6 miles from Cambridge centre" to illustrate the breeze it will be to cycle or walk to work (even assuming your job is in the centre of Cambridge). Bourn Airfield to Cambridge centre is just over 10 miles using the established road network and travelling to the Addenbrooke's site (where most of the new jobs will be) is just over 13 miles. 

Misrepresentation #3 - The need for housing means it HAS to be built on Bourn Airfield

Finally Mr Taylor repeated the usual illogical argument that because we need more housing it must follow that it can only be built on Bourn Airfield. Bourn Airfield is simply the wrong place for a further 3,500 homes. The local area and supporting infrastructure cannot support them and for those shouting 'NIMBY' at opponents it should be remembered that nearly 40% of all new housing built in South Cambridgeshire since 2002 has been built in Bourn ward and has been accepted and welcomed by residents. 

Enough is enough. The site of Bourn Airfield is simply a convenience for South Cambs District Council who have spectacularly failed to act strategically to identify an appropriate site or sites, and has been supported by all other (non-Bourn and Caldecote) district councillors because it relieves them of the hassle in their own areas. There is no principle in operation here at all.

As for the developers, they are in it to make a profit and they have every right to do that. However they do not have the right to cast themselves as social heroes building these badly needed houses as if they were some kind of local crusaders. Mr Taylor said this morning that it is "important to help people get on the housing ladder" - I think we all agree with that. But that housing should be near the jobs and the transport infrastructure and not on Bourn Airfield.

Out of interest I wonder how many of the proposed homes Countryside Properties are planning will be anything like affordable? 

Des O'Brien was unfortunately not given the right of reply to Andrew Taylor's comments. To hear both interviews click here https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05yhkwy (from 19:06)

We note that hot on the heels of the actual public consultation process and before the development at Bourn Airfield has even been approved, Countryside Properties are inviting local people to two public exhibitions*. Their rather smart flyer, which arrived in households in Bourn today, invites us to a public exhibition of their plans for the new village. if this wasn't cynical enough the image adorning the flyer, showing a classic English country village with smart houses and acres of green around them, is dishonest to say the least. Our analysis, as well as that looked at by SCDC, has clearly indicated that the housing density on the space available will have to be extremely tight in order to accommodate the intended 3,500 new homes. It is for this reason the plan has been modified to encroach even closer to Caldecote village - simply to fit them all in. To achieve a development such as this portrays, they would need to be building tower blocks just to fit in the rest of the residents!

We think this is a cynical and dishonest attempt by Countryside Properties to win local support. What do you think?

* The public exhibitions are taking place in Cambourne and Bourn Airfield - nothing seems to have been planned for Caldecote.

The additional land added to the site proposed in Modification SCMM078 will further exacerbate the problem of ribbon development along the A428 and mean that villages will lose their character and identity.

For example, the proposal will mean that the new development will end up within 50m of Highfields Caldecote, removing its identity as a separate settlement. In addition, recently the completion of a further 950 homes in Upper Cambourne has brought houses right up to Bourn Broadway. With the recent approval of 2350 houses in West Cambourne it means there will be a contiguous ribbon of
development from Hardwick in the east right up to the Caxton Gibbet roundabout and the A1198 in the west, a distance of 8km. The villages of Highfields Caldecote, Caxton and Bourn will all be subsumed within a Greater Cambourne strip development.

Developers have repeatedly claimed that the individuality and physical separation of existing and new villages will be maintained. This has been shown to be a false. There is no physical separation between Greater, Lower and Upper Cambourne and there will, in future, be no separation between the new proposed settlement, Upper Cambourne and Hardwick. Any assurances that this is not the case are worthless.

The purpose of the Green Belt is to: prevent unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas; prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another; to safeguard the countryside from encroachment and to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns (villages). These protections should also be applied to those communities south of the A428.

It is also repeating the argument made in 1992, when Bourn Airfield was being considered as the site for Cambourne, that it was unsuitable for a settlement of such size. The Planning Inspector in 1992 submitted a report that stated the “generally small and cramped nature of the site”. He went on to say that, “the Bourn Airfield proposal does lack sufficient room within its boundaries to give adequate separation (from Highfields Caldecote)”. He thought the proposal for only 3,000 dwellings (the current proposal is for 3,500) “would produce a tight development, which when considered in the context of the existing rural character of the area and its proximity to Highfields would appear cramped and too urban in it form and character for this rural area”. These comments were made when Highfields Caldecote was less than half its present size and before the A428 was widened, reducing the size of the Bourn Airfield site by 10 hectares.

The consultation on the Main Modifications to the Local Plan closes on Friday 16th.  The Plan is heavily reliant on new settlements and much is promised in the Local Plan documents supporting this development strategy.   Plans for Bourn Airfield include 'shops, services, leisure and other town centre uses of an appropriate scale for a Rural Centre' as well as 'employment development of a quantum type and mix to meet the needs of the new village'. But are these deliverable?

Cambourne is now 20 years old and a quick photographic survey (see above) of this new settlement clearly shows that it has failed to deliver on similar promises. Cambourne Business Park remains largely unlet and the High Street is effectively an expanse of grass. The promises to deliver a town centre and significant employment in Cambourne have not been fulfilled and here we are making the same empty promises for Bourn Airfield and other new settlements. Isn’t it time we all woke up to the empty spin? ​

In the last couple of weeks we have received many comments from residents who have found SCDC's consultation process cumbersome and difficult to complete. SCDC's online consultation portal has been found to be clunky to navigate through, complex and very time-consuming. The downloadable form (see here), whilst much simpler, still requires cross-referencing between different online pages and a degree of prior knowledge and information. 

We consider that this process has lacked the requisite accessibility, plain English and opportunity to encourage the engagement which government stipulates such consultation should enable. Even those of us involved in StopBAD for a number of years and with huge amounts of information and documentation behind us, have found this a lengthy and confusing process. We are concerned that many people will switch off either because they lack the time needed or through sheer frustration. 

We'd love to hear about your experience. Have you taken part in the consultation yet or tried to? How did you find it? Please do share your comments below - if the process has proved an obstacle to putting your views forward, we will make this known. 

As regular readers will know, the South Cambridgeshire Local Plan was submitted for examination in March 2014. The plan sets out how the development needs in the area will be met to the year 2031. The examination process is being carried out by independent planning inspectors to determine whether the Local Plan is sound and has complied with the necessary legal requirements.
 
The plan has now reached the next key stage in the process.  Overturning an earlier decision that the 'Main Modifications' did not need addressing, the Inspectors have now asked that consultation be carried out on the Main Modifications which may be necessary in order for the Local Plan to be judged sound.
 
Two of the most significant modifications regarding the proposed development at Bourn Airfield concern the extension of the building boundary nearer to Highfields Caldecote and allowing northbound-only access onto the Broadway in Bourn.
 
It is important that the Inspectors are made aware of local opinion on these modifications.
 
StopBAD is keen to instigate a further Hearing on these modifications in order that they can be explored appropriately. To achieve this it is important that the Inspectors are clearly aware of the strength of the objections among local people. To make your opinion known, please go to the website -https://www.scambs.gov.uk/mainmods and have your say.
 
This consultation period is running from Friday 5th January to Friday 16th February.
​

We have been made aware of a recent letter from Conservative MP Grant Shapps to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Sajid Javid.

In the letter written on 6th December 2017, he draws attention to the apparent contradiction between the government's stated intention to preserve airfields and their support for housing development on the same sites. Writing as Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on General Aviation, Mr Shapps says,

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on General Aviation has dismissed claims from the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government that “the current [planning] approach remains appropriate” when considering airfield sites for development.

He goes on to list 15 airfields, including Bourn Airfield, which are threatened with closure for development out of just 96 now remaining in the UK.

To see the full correspondence, click here.
 
​What are your views? We'd love to hear what you think.

As you may know, the Greater Cambridge Partnership (or 'GCP', previously known as the Greater Cambridge City Deal) is a delivery body (comprising Cambridge City Council, Cambridgeshire County Council, South Cambridgeshire District Council, the University of Cambridge and the Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Local Enterprise Partnership) in a city deal with central government to improve infrastructure, employment and housing in the area. The deal will bring around £1 billion of investment into the region over fifteen years. So far, so good and you can see more about the work of the GCP by going to their website - www.greatercambridge.org.uk.

However, it is important to know that those in positions of power are, inevitably, looking to use this funding to further their own political agendas and pet projects. That of course, is fine - that is what we elect politicians for. But what is becoming increasingly apparent is that many of these partnership bodies are promoting infrastructure projects that directly, and often indirectly, support other schemes which the public do not prefer.
 
Between now and January 2018, the GCP is consulting with the public on preferred bus routes from Cambourne to Cambridge. We are aware that many local people are unaware of this consultation process. In particular those of you who oppose the development of Bourn Airfield may like to know that the route favoured by the GCP and most strongly promoted by them in their material - Route C - will be developed over Green Belt land and is likely to cost significantly more (c.£100m) than advertised.

A group of local campaigners has put together a leaflet challenging the information in the official GCP brochure. The Local Liaison Forum (LLF) for thé A428 corridor comprises district and parish councillors from South Cambridgeshire and councillors and residents' groups from Cambridge. Their leaflet draws attention to a series of important errors and omissions on the GCP's consultation brochure. These include:

•  Misleading information on the cost of schemes
•  Vital missing information on Green Belt impact
•  Major errors in the description of the community option, Route B
•  Incorrect information on journey times and reliability
•  Critical omissions in the comparison of Park & Ride sites

Please see the attached leaflet below for further details. Most importantly do look at the GCP's consultation website here and make your views known. We urge you to support Route B.

Some of you will have heard news yesterday suggesting that the Inspectors have approved the Local Plan including 3,500 new homes at Bourn Airfield. 

We were rather surprised to hear that as the Inspectors have yet to make their decision known. 

It is clear that South Cambs District Council and Cambridge City Council have been premature in briefing the press, and others, on the ‘outcome' to the Local Plan Examination. The outcome has certainly not yet been determined. Furthermore, we can report that the Inspectors were surprised and unhappy at the councils' precipitate action. They have written a strongly worded letter to the councils and have specifically asked them to publish their letter to avoid any perception that they have reached a fixed conclusion.

We have attached the Inspectors' letter below. Do let us have your comments.