Codicote

I am an ordinary resident of Codicote and I have looked at North Herts District Councils Local Plan proposal and I whole heartedly reject it.

I have lived in this beautiful friendly village for over 3 years, my kids attend the outstanding local school. It worries me immensely that our already over stretched village will be spoilt by 300+ houses adding extra stress on our educational and healthcare services, road safety by increased traffic and spoil the loveliness that our village promotes.

My one major concern is that of increased traffic, the high street is already over flowing with traffic and is horrendous at peak hours to contend with, walking the kids to school is always a worry due to the volume of vehicles adding to the problem the quarry lorries which disrupt our roads on a daily basis.

My husband cycles to Welwyn North station everyday in all weather and he is increasingly worried that one day he will be knocked off his bike even though he is a capable cyclist. Adding another 300+ cars to the roads will not help at all and just make the roads even more dangerous.

I feel just 'plonking' these extra houses on the outskirts of the village is not the right or safest option for our community and agree with our local MPs Stephen McPartland's view that building another 'garden city' would be in the best interests of all the local villages.

In conclusion I end with the fact again that I am just an ordinary resident of Codicote whom loves there village and fears for its future if these plans get the go ahead. I am not saying the village doesn't need to grow but it needs more consideration than what these plans propose, we need to fix the problems Codicote already has rather than add more and watch what is a wonderful place to live dissolve into a nightmare.

We would like to register our intense objection to the proposed Local Plan in Codicote. We accept that some development is inevitable, however the sheer quantity of housing you are proposing in a small village is simply unfeasible.
We are a small village with the majority of inhabitants having lived here for a significant amount of their lives - the surrounding green belt is a major part of the village and peoples lives and the green corridor is fundamental for local wildlife.
In particular we should like to object to the development on the land north of The Close. This land is essential to the local wildlife and is used by a significant proportion of the villagers of Codicote and the surrounding areas for dog walking, exercise and snow activities. The drainage is not sufficient to be used by a further 48 homes as seen by the flooding which occurs on a regular basis. The Close leads into Valley Road (a dead end) and there is an incline which leads to Bury Lane and out on to the B656. In winter months no cars are able to drive out of Valley Road because of this incline so the road is completely gridlocked, and then as the wintery conditions lessen Valley Road is covered in potholes and every year begins to crumble. The proposed extra 48 homes bring a probable increase of maybe 100 cars - this would bring Valley Road into further disrepair during wintery conditions. The alternative for workers is to get their cars out to the high street before the onset of the ice and snow, but the high street is already full of cars, and with the increased development this road and adjoining roads will become overcrowded and dangerous.
We should like to put on record our objections to the following statements which are taken from your NHDC Local Plan Strategic Policies document ;
'There are quite sizeable employment sites in villages such as Codicote which provide rural jobs and should be retained'. In actual fact today modern day farming provides very little employment. If this proposed development goes ahead we will be losing the local Garden Centre with the loss of several jobs, and Codicote is also on the verge of losing an equestrian centre and the small workshops on the same premises. It is very deceptive to portray Codicote as being able to offer lots of traditional employment - there is a school, a handful of local shops, three pubs and a hairdressers and these provide very limited employment for the village.
'The council is committed to protecting the vitality of all centres' - our local shops rely heavily on passing traffic - if these developments are approved then the increased traffic through Codicote will lead to less parking availability and in real terms most people will not wish to try to leave the traffic jam along the B656 to find parking to use our local shops. Codicote school is full to capacity - more spaces would be needed with expansion of the school, and then more secondary school places as the local senior schools are all over subscribed as well. There is no Doctor surgery in Codicote, and the local surgery in Welwyn is already working above capacity and there are no appointments available for many weeks whenever you try. With increased housing where will all these people register?
You talk about 'exceptional circumstances' which allow green belt boundaries to be altered. I would ask you to make crystal clear what these exceptional circumstances are and what is allowing you to desecrate our green countryside. You say that this has been 'considered by the courts' and 'an approach has been recommended' yet this has not been explained. You say that 'releasing green belt sites for housing will also have some negative environmental effects. We will concentrate on reducing and mitigating these impacts through other policies in this plan' but if you are intending to provide sites in an entirely different area altogether this will not mitigate the loss of green belt in Codicote. Our public Rights of Way must simply be protected and wherever possible be enhanced and preserved. I think that it is imperative that any developing needs to have a plan to keep our green corridors and local green spaces.
You state 'developers will be required to help address cumulative impacts that might arise across multiple developments' and 'avoid placing unreasonable additional burdens on the existing community or existing infrastructure' I think it is fundamental that the developers need to put in place a solid plan so that the facilities in Codicote are not overstretched. You also talk about 'affordable housing' but there is no mention of local people having priority - starter homes, care homes etc.
Your plan states 'our transport modelling does not identify a requirement for any specific mitigation measures in codicote' however increased housing in Codicote will add to the already gridlocked B656 between Hitchin and Welwyn. Currently there is a traffic jam from Codicote Village to the Clock roundabout for over 30 minutes every morning, which should be a 5 minute journey. This will only get worse if the proposed developments take place. There is also a plan for a large development on the edge of Knebworth, and the likelihood is that these cars will be driven down Bury Lane and through Codicote onto the B656 to reach Welwyn and the A1 due to traffic congestion which already exists in Stevenage. People living in Codicote must travel in order to reach the following key higher order facilities: A supermarket (the nearest being 5 miles away in Stevenage); A hospital (the nearest being the Lister Hospital approximately 9 miles away in the north of Stevenage); A secondary school (the nearest being Monk's Wood School located 3.6 miles to the south in the north of Welwyn Garden City); Other further or higher education; Comparison shopping (the nearest being in Stevenage around 6 miles away); Employment (the main centres being Hatfield, 8 miles, Stevenage, 6 miles, St Albans, 9 miles and London); Higher order leisure and recreation facilities (nearest cinema 7 miles away in Stevenage and the nearest swimming pool 5.3 miles away in Stevenage); Other personal business (Stevenage, Hatfield, Welwyn Garden City, St Albans, Luton)

The existing level of bus provision in Codicote is very poor and does not provide a convenient or accessible service for the vast majority of journey types. It would, for example, be very unlikely that the times of buses would allow a person living in Codicote to access work destinations in the main surrounding employment centres. There is no direct bus service between Codicote and the nearest hospital. All of these facilities are beyond walking or cycling distances and it has been shown above that there is very limited opportunity to use public transport to access surrounding urban areas.

We can see no indication that there is a capacity to expand the B656 and on that basis your plan is flawed.

We would appreciate detailed answers to all our questions, and some assurances that the proposed Local Plan will be significantly reduced.

I wish to register my objection to the proposed huge expansion of our village, the amount of dwellings suggested will ruin our green spaces and put excessive strain on the very limited infrastructure of this area, our roads are already overcrowded. The size of the designated sites almost double the size of the village.

I am writing to object to the current planning proposal to expand Codicote Village.

The Councils Sustainability Appraisal and Strategic Environmental Assessment (objective 2a) is to minimise the development of greenbelt land and promote the use of brownfield and contaminated land. In addition to this policy HDS4 states that developments should respect the established character of the area. The proposed volume of housing does not fit with this policy.

The impact of the volume of proposed houses will dramatically impact on the already heavily used road infrastructure. Codicote has extremely poor public transport connections and the proposed development contradicts section 5.11 of the Local Plan. Developments should be directed to areas which have more sustainable and better public transport links.

The volume of proposed housing will add to the volume of traffic on the neighbouring roads. Section 5.1 of the local plan states that the area has a relatively good transport network of which I dispute due to my regular commutes to Hitchin, Hatfield, Welwyn Garden City and St. Albans all of which are highly trafficked routs out of and into Codicote. The B656 is a through route at peak times of traffic when the A1(M) is busy. St. Albans Road access onto Cory Wright Way at Wheathampstead is increasingly difficult between 07:30 and 08:00 sometimes taking 15 minutes just to exit St. Albans Road. Accessing the A1(M) at rush hour can take up to 25 minutes. All of which significantly impacts on the roadways, verges and natural habitat of the local country lanes.

The existing volume of traffic along with the village's own requirements for day to day life, such as travel to the local school for the pupils and parents often conflict and with this proposed expansion will significantly propose a greater risk to all road users

The current infrastructure of power, water and drainage is constantly failing and thus being maintained which indicates that the systems are stretched. This expansion will add to these services and impact on the village.

I urge you on these grounds to review the plans and realise that the expansion of Codicote is not feasible and to look at other more viable solutions to the housing shortfall.

I am writing to express my great concern over the proposed plan to increase the number of dwellings in Codicote by more than 25% of the existing village size. I accept that more housing is needed, and that Codicote should provide some, but what is suggested is an unacceptable large 'share' and totally inappropriate for the reasons I will discuss below. I have lived in Codicote for over 35 years and therefore am well qualified to express concerns based on the problems the village faces already, all of which will be made worse by such a large number of additional dwellings.

My reasons for objecting are as follows:

1. Lack of employment. Employment within Codicote itself is minimal (and indeed loss one of the suggested housing sites - the Garden Centre - will remove an area of employment that does exist. This means that the new housing will be for commuters- and each household will need at least 2 cars.

2. Lack of decent transport links - cars are needed to get to the station - (about 5 miles away). Even increasing the existing few bus links would not help much as most commuters cannot be certain of their return time.

3. It will not be 'affordable housing' which is what is required, as those in real need of affordable housing will find it difficult to afford to run the two cars. Affordable housing is best placed near to employment or to rail links. Current 'affordable' housing in Codicote - such as 'The Paddocks' is barely affordable now.

4. TRAFFIC - as stated above, each new dwelling will generate at least 2 cars, of which it is probable that at least one, if not both, will head to and from Welwyn on the B656. The B656 already carries a huge amount of commuter traffic heading south (to Welwyn) from around 7-9 am and north (towards Hitchin) from 4.00 -7.00 pm, as the road is used as a 'rat run' to avoid the bottleneck of only 2 lanes in the A1M between Stevenage and Welwyn. At these 'rush hours' it is very difficult for traffic from the side roads of Codicote actually to get on to the B656 unless a kind driver lets them in - and this difficulty is greatest if trying to 'cross the traffic' - ie in the morning enter from West (as would be those from Heath Lane and from Cowards Lane), or evening from the East.

5. Parking- unless the new dwellings are given 2 parking slots. Most of the new houses built since we moved to Codicote have only been given one such slot- so cars are parked on the roads in many inappropriate places. More houses can only make this worse.

6. General infrastructure- the excellent primary school is already massively oversubscribed. It is very difficult to get an appointment with the Doctors in Welwyn (they get booked up within minutes of opening a booking period). I do not have the knowledge to comment on the adequacy of drainage , supply of water , power etc. However, in some years the river Mimram has run dry from water extraction- - I do not know if this is still a major source of the supply to local villages.

I accept that Codicote should do its share in taking some new houses, -the site next to 'the Close' has been under consideration for housing for as long as I have lived in the village and 48 houses there is reasonable. However, the numbers of suggested houses on the Heath Lane and Cowards Lane sites are totally inappropriate. Codicote Garden Centre with its excellent café is a major amenity for the village - in particular for the elderly (there are three sites of sheltered housing in Codicote) , and for those with young children, as it is possible to walk there on a pavement (not possible for the further Garden Centre). The Garden Centre would be a great loss.

I do hope that the Government's Inspector will reconsider this plan.

North Herts DC Local Plan, Codicote
We are writing to strongly oppose the proposal for 315 new houses to be built in Codicote. We have lived in the village for more than 40 years and whilst appreciating that there is a need for additional housing in the area, the proposal to increase the size of Codicote with 315 new houses (a 35% increase within the village itself) is disproportionate and unacceptable. Codicote is an ancient village of historic interest. The character of the village is in jeopardy with these proposals.

Traffic
The High Street is a main thoroughfare between Welwyn and Hitchin and currently is frequently congested due to roadside parking and commuter traffic. This congestion is exacerbated through sheer weight of traffic and when there are incidents on the A1(M) when traffic diverts to the surrounding local roads.
The roads leading from Codicote to the surrounding villages are single track lanes at many points and are already totally unsuitable for either the volume or size of vehicles that use them.
Public transport is not comprehensive enough to be practical for the vast majority of residents. The proposal to build 315 houses in Codicote will bring an in the order of 550 additional vehicles to the immediate area.
There is little employment and any new residents are likely to have to travel to their work and they will probably travel by car further increasing traffic flows (77% of existing residents commute by car) Additionally the local school is already oversubscribed so children will be required to travel to other areas to attend school resulting in even more traffic. Already the school bus which travels to Welwyn Garden City is often delayed by traffic at Welwyn with the children arriving late.
There is a continuing campaign with regard to the number of heavy lorries from a nearby quarry which route through the village causing congestion, pollution and danger to pedestrians and other road users. More houses will inevitably bring nmore cars locally causing further issues.

Schools
The school provision is plainly inadequate for the large influx of children that this new housing will produce. Codicote Primary School is already over-subscribed from the current population.
Under the National Planning Policy Framework 2012, the Government states that 'key facilities such as primary schools ....should be located within walking distance of most properties. The Government attaches great importance to ensuring that a sufficient choice of school places is available to meet the needs of existing and new communities.'
There will also be increased pressure on the secondary schools in the wider area and the necessarily increased transport links.

Green Belt
Codicote stands in the Green Belt and is therefore protected from development and expansion.
According to the National Planning Policy Framework 2012, the idea of the Green Belt 'is a ring of countryside where urbanisation will be resisted for the foreseeable future, maintaining an area where agriculture, forestry and outdoor leisure can be expected to prevail.' The Framework continues: 'Once an area of land has been defined as green belt, the stated opportunities and benefits include:
* Providing opportunities for access to the open countryside for the urban population
* Providing opportunities for outdoor sport and outdoor recreation near urban areas
* The retention of attractive landscapes and the enhancement of landscapes, near to where people live
* The securing of nature conservation interests
* The retention of land in agricultural, forestry and related uses
* Green belt in England is protected both by normal planning controls and against "inappropriate development" within its boundaries.'

Conservation
The Heath Lane proposal is directly adjacent to listed buildings (Codicote House and the Lodge Farm Development) and a conservation area. The proposal for 140 new homes here will overwhelm these buildings.

Alternative Proposals
Our local MP has issued a statement supporting the creation of a new Garden City within the District. This seems to be a far more sensible approach to the need for additional housing in the District and we would support this.

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With reference to your decision on the Proposed Local Plan, I would ask you to consider the disproportionate impact that building 349 new homes will have on Codicote village, a scale of development that is completely inappropriate and totally excessive. I believe it would cause significant harm to Codicote, its rural setting and the Green Belt.

Codicote village would be overwhelmed and its inadequate facilities/ infrastructure unable to cope with such a huge concentration of new housing representing a 36% enlargement to the settlement area of the village (as shown on NHDC's map).

Traffic congestion is already a major problem for Codicote and a daily nightmare for its residents. Codicote's roads are mainly narrow country lanes which cannot cope with existing traffic volumes. Increasing traffic volumes on these unsuitable roads will have serious implications for road safety.
As concluded by the SRC commissioned Traffic Report, Codicote, as a location for new development, does not minimize the need to travel, or maximize the use of sustainable transport modes and the proposed development at Codicote is not, therefore, compliant with paragraph 34 of the NPPF.
With regard to Green Belt, the Planning Minister is very clear that Green Belt boundaries should only be adjusted in exceptional circumstances and with the support of local people. Furthermore, he states that the Government has been repeatedly clear that the demand for housing alone will not change Green Belt boundaries. There is no evidence that NHDC has the support of local people in adjusting the Green Belt boundaries (quite the opposite in fact). Additionally there are no exceptional circumstances beyond the demand for housing.

NHDC's Local Plan therefore does not comply with the Government's National Planning policy and it fails the test of 'soundness' in two significant respects;
1. Codicote does not represent a sustainable location for new development, and;
2. Misappropriation of Green Belt land for housing when there are still brown field sites available.

I don't believe that adding hundreds of additional homes in our villages is at all justified when there is a far preferable option than destroying our historic villages. Creation of a new settlement, a Garden Village or Town, with all modern amenities, should be given more serious consideration by NHDC.
In conclusion, I do not believe that NHDC's Local Plan has been positively prepared, is justified, effective or consistent with national policy.
Surely 36%+ growth of a historic village cannot be the most justified/appropriate course of action.
NHDC's Local Plan would do significant harm to Codicote and the Green Belt, so I would urge you, to use your powers, to reject it.

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I am writing as we are very concerned about the proposed plans to build 315 new houses in Codicote.

We have lived in the village for 11 years and have seen the High Street become much busier with heavy passing traffic and parked vehicles. Most people who currently live in the village use the B656 to access the A1 or surrounding areas. This is the only direct route through the village from north to south. People have a nightmare journey to get around the A1 roundabout at peak times: this has been made more difficult due to the Clock House development. The village currently has a poor bus service so it leaves no option other than to drive to your destination. 315 new houses will mean many additional cars on the road, particularly as other means of transport to and from the village are inadequate. Codicote does not represent a sustainable location for new development. The Local Plan fails the test of soundness on the basis of one of the four key criteria - 'Consistent with national policy, the plan should enable the delivery of sustainable development in accordance with the policies in the National Planning Policy Framework.'

We have seen three new housing developments in the last year and another is underway on the High Street. The congestion that was caused when the CALA housing development was taking place south of the main part of the village itself on the B656 was terrible, and this was for only a few houses. The beautiful open spaces that surround the village are full of wildlife that would be greatly affected by any new development on Green Belt land. The Local Plan of 1996 confirmed that the status of land around Codicote was Green Belt and it was protected accordingly. This was reiterated in their 'Saving Policies' of 2007. With this in mind, why was Codicote's Green Belt ever considered a suitable area for urban development? When you bear in mind all the above it would seem the local plan is unsound on the basis that it fails on another one of the four key criteria that it must be "Justified - the plan should be the most appropriate strategy, when considered against the reasonable alternatives, based on proportionate evidence.'

This year we have struggled to get our daughter into an already over-subscribed pre-school and those families with school age children have the same problem, with some children who live in the village not able to get a place at our local primary school, Codicote CE Primary. Access to the school is limited and where people chose to drive, they often park in St. Albans Road and walk through the pathway to the school. The lorries from the quarry have to pass along St. Albans Road, (where there is no traffic management or pedestrian crossings), and they regularly use this road at peak school run times. Their size and speed is difficult to accommodate on our over congested small roads. I truly believe it's only a matter of time before there is a bad accident.

With regard to current GP facilities for residents of Codicote, there is often a wait of up to two weeks for a Doctor's appointment as they are over-subscribed. Hospital facilities are also over stretched: our local A&E unit at the Lister Hospital recently reported a wait time of up to seven hours.

We accept that there is a need for more housing in Hertfordshire but feel that a new Garden City would be a much more viable option that would not affect the current towns and villages.

We are writing to express our concern about the Local Plan, which we feel is unsound. The proposed sites in Knebworth, as well as Codicote and the surrounding area, will have a detrimental impact on roads, railways, education, the environment and the character of our villages.

Knebworth surgery is already overstretched. There are plans to build a new surgery, but this is to replace the current one, it is not an additional service.

The Great Northern railway service is overcrowded at peak times and even off peak there is often standing room only. Parking at Knebworth Station is totally inadequate.

The B197 through Knebworth and the B656 through Codicote take a lot of commuter traffic from adjoining villages which converges at Old Welwyn to join the A1M. At peak times, all these roads become congested, even gridlocked. When the A1M, M1 or M25 have closures the extra traffic converges on our local roads bringing everything to a standstill. The impact of extra housing and therefore more vehicles will be catastrophic.

Contrary to the Department of Transport's guidelines Sites KB1 and KB2 in particular are unacceptably close to the AlM, potentially causing unpleasant and unacceptable environmental conditions for residents.

We feel that the Council has not demonstrated 'exceptional circumstances' for removing land from the Green Belt. Green Belt land offers significant protection of the space between villages and towns in the district enabling Knebworth to keep a separate identity.

The Local Plan is inadequately prepared and, if the proposed housing goes ahead, the character of Knebworth and the surrounding villages will be changed irrevocably. A new garden city, as has been suggested by our MP Stephen McPartland, would seem to be an excellent solution to the district's housing dilemma.

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I write to express my objections to the proposal to develop green belt land in Codsicote, nr Hitchin, Herts for the purposes of additional housing. I was born in Dark Lane, Codicote in the 1960's and have lived there throughout my childhood and on & off during adulthood. I continue to spend considerable time there with family & friends & hence have considerable knowledge of the local community.
I would like to make the following points to support my objection to large scale development in Codicote & particularly the violation of green belt:
1. Codicote is a relatively small rural village which would not sustain a sudden expansion of housing stock of nearly 25%.
2. The proposal is all to take place on green belt land and is not in fill between established buildings.
3. Currently the population consists of a mixture of those employed locally in rural, retail & service industry and commuters travelling to larger conurbations including Stevenage, Hitchin, Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield, St Albans & London. There is no likelihood of the proposed expansion in housing being matched by a similar increase in local jobs hence there will be considerable increase in strain on transport links & the village risks becoming a dormitory town to London.
4. Codicote is situated on the B656 which is a very busy B road but is already struggling to deal with the current traffic density. The road is particularly narrow between Codicote & Welwyn (which is the nearest access to the A1(M)) & during peak hours entry onto this road from St Albans Rd, Heath Rd, Cowards La, Whitwell Rd & Rabley Heath Rd is very difficult & potentially dangerous due to sight lines & parked cars - these problems will only intensify with development of the village.
5. The B656 due to its route is well known as an accident blackspot between Codicote & Hitchin.
6. The access to Wheathampstead & St. Albans is via St. Albans/Codicote Rd, this is a narrow C road & is unsuitable for heavy traffic (and already accommodates HGV's & heavy plant from the Quarry)
7. There is no public transport from Codicote to St Albans & irregular/limited bus services to Hitchin, Welwyn & Stevenage. There is no Train station in the village & access to the mainline will require car use (cycling facilities are limited) with increase in congestion, pollution & car parking problems.
8. Educational facilities are limited to a primary school, which would struggle to manage an influx of pupils. The drop off & pick-up points for the school tends to be from St Albans Rd. accessing the school via a footpath alleyway (the road entrance to the school is on Meadow Way) - the volume of parked cars & traffic during School drop off creates dangers & delays.
9. Secondary school & higher education facilities are absent
10. There are no emergency services based in Codicote - the nearest hospitals are in Stevenage & Welwyn Garden City as are the nearest Police Stations there is a ?volunteer firestation in Welwyn (along with the Library). There are no GP primary care services within the village & based on personal experiences there is considerable difficulty in appointing new GPs in areas with a high cost of living due to NHS salaries. (I suspect this applies to almost all other community professionals eg Teachers etc)
11. There are no entertainment hubs within walking distance except village pubs.
12. There are no major supermarkets or retail outlets within walking distance.
13. The services in the village are limited or finite: The mains drainage is not designed to cope with the current demand (& Dark Lane does not have main drain); Water is pumped from the river Mimram, which often reduces to barely a trickle during Summer months; Internet speeds are slow.
14. The level of pollution from traffic & housing is likely to rise considerably particularly along the B656 which is the main village shopping centre/High Street.
15. There are limited crossing points across the High St/B656 but shops on both sides putting pedestrians at risk. Parking is limited in this area with cars encroaching on the pavements (further crossing points would increase vehicle traffic delays & potentially cause gridlock at peak times with consequent pollution problems)
16. The environmental impact will be huge - the proposal will destroy large areas of agricultural, grazing hedgerows & spinneys displacing wildlife & could risk eradicating or contaminating surrounding rivers.
17. There will be considerable light pollution generated by the development, which would particularly effect the Three Hills area & Mimram Valley and the Hamlet of Ayot St Lawrence, which is a known beauty spot.
18. The proposed access to the Heath la/St Albans Rd site(CD5) is not viable:
- The farm track between houses on the St Albans Rd is approx. 12 feet wide
- The narrow strip of land on Dark Lane is not wide enough for access to a major development (& would need to allow Emergency & sevice vehicles) and opens onto Dark lane which is unsuitable for motor vehicles, single track and has a junction on to St Albans Rd at a sharp bend with a very poor site line.
- The possibility of access via Heath La is also not viable as this again is a very narrow road & a steep (1:10) hill.

I can find little to commend the proposals and trust you will note the above points when considering the application.

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I am writing to you provide you with my objections to the proposed Codicote Local Development Plan (part of the Proposed Submission Local Plan 2011-2031). I have been a resident of Codicote for around 50 years, and my two daughters have also been homeowners here. As such I feel I am well placed to comment on the Local Development Plan.

Whilst I appreciate that there is a shortage of housing in the current climate and that the village will have to provide new houses, the number of dwellings proposed in this Plan is far beyond what the village infrastructure could cope with. The 315 dwellings proposed represents growth of almost 25%.

Over the last few years Codicote has grown significantly and its infrastructure is already severely over stretched. The proposed plan will radically change the nature of this rural country village. My objections are as follows:

1. School

The school is already oversubscribed. Although enlarging it is within the plan, the quantity of houses envisaged will fill that immediately. The secondary schools all involve a commute (which would add extra traffic and school buses to the roads) and would struggle to provide places to the additional children.

2. Doctors

The local GP surgery is already at crisis point and it is extremely difficult to get a doctors appointment with the present number of residents. They often quote 3-week waiting times. The surgery finds it extremely hard to recruit new GPs to cope with present demand.

3. Transport

The village roads are crowded and these are rural lanes quite unsuited to managing a lot more traffic. At peak times it is difficult to gain access to the main B656, and there are long daily tailbacks through the village. Parking near the shops on the high street is already always difficult, and school drop-off and collection times mean gridlock in the side streets. Extra houses would increase pollution and journey times.

4. Utilities

The main drains in the village are said to be struggling to manage the present level of use. There are still some houses that are not connected to the mains drains because of the difficulties with levels.

It is doubtful that the pumping station by the river could deal with the number of houses in the proposed plan. It has one small pipe leading to the village water tower that is a fair distance away from the pumping station. A few years ago the river even dried up due to increased demand.

The electricity supply is similarly challenged and a new sub-station had to be built after the supply dropped below the legal limit after some in-fill houses were built.

5. Recreation & Nature

Although some of the proposed sites (such as CD2 by the garden centre) would appear to have good road access, other proposed sites are in the green belt. They are also extremely rural and are traversed by footpaths that are regularly used by dog walkers.

The Mimram Valley is one of the most beautiful areas in this part of Hertfordshire. To blight it with the CD5 development is a significant loss. The large green belt area to the south of Heath Lane and west of St Albans Road (CD5) is prime green belt land. Building on it would totally affect the entire nature of the village and have a very detrimental effect on the diverse wildlife dependent upon it. This includes deer, foxes, badgers, herons, egrets, owls, red kites and many other species.

Dark Lane offers an attractive year-round walk. The villagers extensively use it for recreational purposes. Dog walkers, cyclists, horse riders and families visiting the Mimram river (that is accessed further down via a bridleway) use this quiet, pretty lane frequently. The proposed CD5 development would surely mean that the high traffic levels would be too dangerous for this recreational use to continue. This would be a big loss to the community and to their access to, and enjoyment of, nature.

6. Farming

The CD5 and CD1 proposed houses would replace a dwindling supply of established permanent pasture, which has for decades been used for fattening farm cattle and sheep, and producing summer hay crops. We need such established farmland to feed the British cattle and sheep that in turn feed the people of our country. There would also be loss of open space and loss of Green Belt land.

7. Road Safety

The proposed access to CD5 from St Albans Road and Dark Lane is ridiculously inappropriate. One access is a grassy farm track just wide enough for a tractor or land rover. The other access point off Dark Lane is also narrow, and becomes an overhung single-track road currently serving just three houses. Dark Lane comes off a very dangerous blind bend on St Albans Lane. This is surely the most dangerous corner in the village. To increase the traffic to it would be unfeasible.

Similarly the CD1 houses would be accessed off Cowards Lane, which too is a single-width lane that connects onto one of the faster travelling sections of the High Street featuring a blind summit.

To conclude, I believe that the rural nature of Codicote village would be lost forever by the proposed number of houses outlined in this ill conceived plan.

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I would like to object to the plans to build houses in Codicote on the Heath Lane site and the various other sites planned for Codicote. I am more concerned about Heath Lane plans as this is close to where we live. It worries our family about the amount of traffic we are already encountering in St Albans Road regarding cars and huge numbers of lorries going to the quarry.

Due to the quarry traffic with huge numbers of lorries travelling down St Albans road I have contracted a dust allergy, the extra traffic of 375 cars, which most families have at least 2 cars per family making it at least another 750 cars travelling in our rural village will be a nightmare not only to the environment but to the already dangerous village roads. Where we live on St Albans Road, I have witnessed so many near misses (some collisions) with lorries and large vans, I can't begin to imagine the detrimental affect of at least 750 more cars on these village roads. I did take photos of a lorry and white van colliding, I would have to search through hundreds of photos if required. NHDC have completely ignored the quarry traffic in their section on Codicote in the Local Plan. The roads in question Heath lane, St Albans Road and the High Street are already dangerous roads, for driving and our children to walk along and cross.

I am also concerned about the fact that the land is in fact green belt, which I believe allows open spaces to not be built upon. There is so much wildlife that comes into our garden from the fields planned for development. We have rabbits, birds (woodpeckers/robins and huge numbers of other wild species) owls, bats, mice, hedgehogs, foxes, muntjac deer....all have been seen in our garden or in the field behind which is planned for development. What happens when the proposed company Ashill come to dig out all the land for foundations, killing so much wildlife in the process. Also we have 2 dogs, as a family we have always enjoyed using the various footpaths down Dark Lane, St Albans road, Heath Lane and along the fields to walk our dogs in our lovely rural village. That will all disappear to a mass of houses, no longer rural, it will be like living in a town.

A town without correct amenities to support the number of houses planned for the village. The suggestion for Heath Lane is 140 houses, the property development website in actual fact says 200 houses, link attached. This is in the addition of 73 new Houses on Cowards Lane, 48 House in The Close and 54 House in The Garden Centre areas. That's 375 houses if all developers stick within the suggested numbers, which will most likely be increased.

http://www.ashillgroup.co.uk/developments/codicote-heath-lane/index.htm

We currently have a village school which we chose not to send our children to, as the class sizes were over 36 at the time and unacceptable. We have no doctors surgery in Codicote, so use Welwyn Village Surgery which is already over capacity and so difficult to actually see a doctor.

The list is endless as to why our already large village cannot expand any further, what about water supplies, our water pressure is already pretty terrible, we have had many drainage issues, our power supply is a worry, we are experiencing more power cuts and broadband speeds are already busy, even though we are on fibre optic/BT Infinity. I have complained about all these issues to our suppliers in the past.

It will be so sad to see this lovely rural village be taken over by houses and reduce the rural open space feel of our current village. Please choose a better area to build the number of houses required by the government.

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RE: North Herts Local Plan Site CD3 - I do not want to take part in the oral examination and do wish to be notified when the plan is submitted

I am writing to oppose the housing developments in Codicote, in particular the site at CD3 Land North of The Close.
The charm of Codicote is that it is an ancient village, where the residents, in the main, know each other. The proposed development is going towards turning it into a small town, thus completely ruining it's character forever.
I stated my objections during the last round of consultation and wish to restate them here. In the first instance I would like to ask why the idea of creating a new Garden City has not been further explored in this consultation. This would provide the housing that the plan seems to suggest is needed. It would then be possible to provide the infrastructure that the current plans are sadly lacking in. This would make use of the areas of disused land.
In particular I would like to ask how you plan to overcome the following problems which will inevitably arise from the building of further housing in Codicote.
1. Transport and travel
There is currently no train station and a limited bus service. This already causes problems for residents attempting to get to local doctors, hospitals and to shops. This results in people further taking to their cars, creating yet more congestion within the village. The High Street is the main access for many to reach the A1M, both from Codicote itself and surrounding villages and this is already an extremely congested area with rush hours causing long delays. The added traffic from the new Clock development has already added to this congestion at the A1 roundabout. This along with the added strain of Quarry traffic will make this road dangerous and difficult to park on, therefore reducing the number of people using the local businesses The building of houses in Codicote, Kimpton and Old Welwyn will only add further pressure to this already busy, congested and often dangerous road. An increase in traffic will surely be in contravention of Design Policy D3 Protecting living conditions, in the Local Plan.
There are an additional 315 new houses planned for Codicote, The average number of cars per household in rural villages is 1.77 (source: Department of Transport National Travel Survey). That equates to nearly 560 additional cars in the village. The Local Plan (paragraph 13.82) states: "Sites in Codicote will need to ensure that any transport assessments appropriately take these issues into account and contribute reasonably to any necessary mitigation measures which may seek to address these issues." Given that currently approximately 75% of the residents travel out of the village for work and that this will also be the case for residents in new developments; how could any mitigation measures possibly address these issues to any degree of satisfaction, this surely fails one of the key criteria of the plan - that it be 'justified'.
In particular site CD3 will involve traffic from all 48 houses exiting along an already congested and poorly unkept residential road, Valley Road, exiting the village either through the already busy high street or the again poorly kept lanes leading to Stevenage. I would like to ask how this can be an option which your surveys and investigations found to be preferable to a site where access is via a main road.
Section 4 of NPPF paragraph 34 dictates that Local Plans should prioritise developments in areas where journey times and distances are minimised, where good public transport links exist and where sustainable transport (walking, cycling) can be maximised. Codicote is not such an area and the plan on this count fails the sustainability test.
2. Schools and Education
The local primary school is a successful and outstanding school. It is ideal as a village school for village residents, if the plans to extend the school go ahead then this will change the character and nature of the school completely.
I would like you to tell me your plans for where these children will attend secondary school when schools in nearby Stevenage are already closing. Also to how you see the increase in transportation of these children being achieved without creating more congestion and traffic in our village.
3. Doctors' Surgeries.
Codicote does not have it's own doctors' surgery at present, this means that residents have to travel to outlying villages and make use of the already busy surgeries there. I would like to hear from you how you plan to address this within your current plan of building 315 new houses. How does your plan demonstrate that the infrastructure to accommodate this is present.
4. Green belt land.
Codicote is within the boundaries of the Green Belt area, and subject to it's protections. It protects the boundaries between the villages and provides opportunities for access to open countryside, the ability to see wildlife flourish and get the exercise that the government promotes as so vital to the health and wellbeing of residents. Building on the sites such as CD3 will be a misuse of green belt land and adversely affect those living here.
5. Flood risk
The area adjacent to site CD3 had in the past been vulnerable to flooding. The reduction in open countryside, the addition of further Tarmac and concrete non porous surfaces all built on a steep slope leading down to The Paddocks and Valley Road will surely increase this flood risk to unacceptable levels. Currently my own property is up to 8 inches deep in water in heavy rains with water running down from the higher land at the front of the house and and the back where the proposed housing would be on site CD3, this will only get worse if houses and building goes ahead on this site. I would like to know how you propose to prevent this in your plans.

In conclusion village life is about ' achieving sustainable development which means ensuring that better lives for ourselves don't mean worse lives for future generations' Rt Hon Greg Clark MP, Minister for Planning - National Planning Policy Framework 2012.
'Adding new developments of homes on the edge of villages... Is hugely damaging to the immense strain on public services in the Villages' As stated by Stephen McPartland MP Stevenage. I strongly oppose the plans for Codicote and in particular CD3 for the reasons that I have stated above. Again I ask why the apparent need for housing stated in your proposal is not being covered by the creation of a new Garden City.

I am writing in reference to the information that has been posted on Save Rural Codicote Facebook site.

Apparently the company behind Heath Lane wants to build 200 houses not the 140 in the local shared planned. The planning consultant has confirmed that this is entirely possible as developers may propose to build more houses. I am wondering if the members of the planning committee at NHDC and my local MP are actually listening to the people of Codicote, it appears you are not and these building developers are able to go ahead and find back doors to allow these houses to be built, even when the whole community of Codicote doesn't want them to be build. Are you not listening to the people of Codicote, it seems you are not so I will spell it out for you.

WE DO NOT WANT ANY FURTHER HOUSING DEVELOPMENT IN CODICOTE

What are you actually doing to prevent this housing development to our rural community. From my view it seems absolutely nothing, you are you even considering the damage this will do, for example.

a) Road safely for children and the elderly in the village
b) The village school
c) The increased number of cars that would be running through the village
d) The traffic noise and pollution
e) The country side and the impact it will have on wild life
f) The lorries which are already a pain in the village
g) Heavier traffic in the morning, seems most of the A1M use Codicote as a by-pass when there is heavy traffic on motorway
f) Bus transportation to other schools

I would like to put forward that I completely disagree with all of the housing development within the proposed submission local plan relating to Codicote area.

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