How To Object 2020
Everyone’s individual objections are important:
the more that the council receive the louder our voice is…
The public consultation for the 2020 proposal is now open with a deadline for comments from the public to be received by 1st Aug 2020. This page provides details of how to register your objection and specific objections you could consider including.
On this page:
- List of key objections
- Submitting your objections
- Guide to using the NHDC Planning Portal
- Objections that aren’t considered valid
- If your property borders the site
- Echo Hill residents
- Tickbox letter
- CPRE Guide to commenting on planning applications
List of key objections
Suggested detailed reasons for objections for are as follows – click on each item for more details:
- Not supported by the Emerging Local Plan – The application site is located in the Rural Area Beyond the Green Belt, outside the settlement boundary of Royston as illustrated in both the current North Herts Local Plan
- Highways and Traffic impact – there are many points for objections around this and these are supported in the Hertfordshire County Council response which recommended refusal of the application; and in our RSNTG transport and highways advice note by Royal Haskoning DHV (an independent engineering, design and project management consultancy)
- Visual Impact – exactly as in 2018, the proposed development will have a significant adverse visual impact
- Impact on Ecology – the development poses a threat to the ecology of the area especially Therfield Heath and the SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest).
- Risk to our water supply – the proposed development site sits above a groundwater supply which is at major risk of contamination if the development goes ahead
Please note these are just suggestions and residents are to personalise their responses and raise concerns that they are most upset about. However, we recommend your objections are made on a number of issues, as this will make for a stronger case and will give a higher weighting against the site when it is assessed against the requirements of Sustainable Development in accordance with the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
We have also provided an outline objection letter which you can use as a template for writing your own.
Gladman has used terminology that reflects NHDC and Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) own wording in policy documents, and the NPPF to illustrate their compliance with these policies. We need to do the same with our own objections wherever possible. Therefore either within the main objection text we have provided these or as listed in the conclusions, which allows residents to make reference to the appropriate policy either listed within the NPPF, Local Plan or /and design best practice guidance.
North Herts Local Plan is unfortunately in a weaker position since the 2018 Application. Therefore RSNtG have employed a number of technical experts (consultants) to help support our objections. We have drawn upon the conclusions from these experts and the technical reports, to help inform this text.
Submitting your objections
You can register your objections in one of three ways:
- Online using the NHDC Planning Portal
- By sending a formal letter to the NHDC council offices (Melissa Tyler, Planning Officer, NHDC, Council Offices, Gernon Road, Letchworth Garden City, Herts, SG6 3JF)
- By sending a formal letter as a PDF attachment to an email to the NHDC Planning Officer in charge of the case – Melissa Tyler (melissa.tyler@north-herts.gov.uk)
We suggest registering your objections using at least 2 of these methods above. In particular, the NHDC Planning Portal is limited to a maximum of 3000 words, so this won’t work for lengthy objections.
Every adult in your house is entitled to send their own objection, even if living at the same address, please consider doing this as one factor that the council will consider is the overall number of objections.
Guide to using the NHDC Planning Portal
If you’ve never used the online planning portal before either to comment on or submit a planning application this guide here is a step-by-step guide.
Objections that aren’t considered valid
Comments from residents which are NOT material planning considerations are as follows:
- Loss of a private view
- Loss of value to your property
- Loss of private access rights
Please therefore avoid these issues and any recommendations for alternative access points or reallocation of the housing to different locations within the site, as this will only weaken the argument against the development.
If your property borders the site
Those who border the site should raise any concerns they may have about the impact of the development on their properties. Due to the elevated location of the development site in relation to the existing surrounding properties, it is likely that the new dwellings would give rise to existing residents being left with a sense of being overlooked, overshadowed and dominated by new development. This could detrimentally impact on your reasonable expectations of residential amenity and privacy.
Echo Hill residents
Echo Hill residents will be contacted separately regarding some additional site-specific objections beyond those listed here. We therefore urge these residents to await a few more days for this sensitive information to be provided.
Tickbox letter
It’s important that objection letters represent your individual perspectives so it is best to write the letter yourself – below a list of key objections you may want to consider using, and an outline letter, and a short guide on how to use the NHDC Planning Portal. If however you want to object and are short of time please use this “tickbox” letter – download it, print it, fill it in and post it to NHDC. We understand particularly at the moment that we all have a lot on our minds regarding the safety of family and friends.
CPRE Guide to commenting on Planning Applications
For more comprehensive guidance on the planning process, objection on applications, and how these are taken in to consideration by the council see the CPRE Guide to commenting on Planning Applications.