Norton Lindsey

Norton Lindsey should be reclassified as a Category 3 Village.
NL does not have the facilities to support the proposed number of houses which would increase the size by 50%.
NL has a poor and narrow road and pavement structure.
There is a danger that existing adjacent small villages could end up merging into one large village, spoiling all of them!
Consider building a few houses suitable for 'growing families' and those 'wishing to downsize'. Sites for those need to be carefully chosen.

An increase in the size of Norton Lindsey by 30-80 houses would represent a disproportionate (25-50%) increase to the size of the village. The village is currently protected by the green belt, a significant conservation area, both listed buildings and a landmark (the Jubilee Signpost) and tree preservation orders (Dorrel Oak). These protections have been afforded so as not to change the nature of the village and to protect it as a "place with special characteristics" (Conservation area document). The allocation of 30-80 houses to Norton Lindsey would not be able to be built in the village over the next 15 years without affecting the above, all of which have been protected for good reasons all of which are still valid and still require protection. Even areas of the village which do not have specific protection either have an impact on the protected areas - "significant views" from the conservation area or have significant historical interest themselves - eg mediaeval ridge & furrow fields which would have provided food for the village in mediaeval times and which should be protected.
Additionally Norton Lindsey does not fit in with the suggested approach to the broad location of growth (PO3) due to not fulfilling requirement that:
"Any housing development must be built close to existing services and facilities so that people do not have to travel far to get to schools, shops, leisure facilities or workplaces." Norton Lindsey has a poor and narrow road structure through and out of the village with no footpaths or cycle paths and an inevitable increase in traffic will create additional dangers particularly to children walking in the village. The bus service runs twice per week to Solihull (513) on a Mon & Thurs at 09:25 and twice per week to Stratford (521) on a Tues and Fri at 11:02 demonstrating the need for every household to have a car as there is also no medical facility or shop in the village.
Norton Lindsey enjoys an historic hill top setting in a prominent location. It is essential that the nature and character of Norton Lindsey is not severely compromised by development.

P04 - Village Classification. Norton Lindsey is characterised by its history of natural, organic development and the majority of logical spaces for building have been largely filled in. Although some selective development may still be possible on isolated sites, the addition of between 30 - 80 dwellings, even over 17 years is a disproportionate increase in a community of only about 140 homes. The village offers only the most basic of amenities, with no shop, regular public transport service (bus or train), and no local business centre.

it cannot support what might amount to a 50% increase in size whilst meeting the sustainability objectives of the plan which are to reduce motorised travel. This is further brought into question as the local road system has some obvious safety deficiences which are not solved just by reducing traffic speed.

Norton Lindsey does not adhere to the Council's view that new housing must be built to existing services and facilities. The school is in the Stratford upon Avon DC. There are no shops or medical facilities. Limited public transport only to Stratford and Solihull during the week and none on Saturday and Sunday.
The extra housing would generate more cars thus increasing greenhouse gases.
There is no mains gas in Norton Lindsey.
Norton Lindsey is in a conservation area and has an historic environment with a 13c church and medieval ridge and furrow fields.

Norton Lindsey is unsuitable for proposed size of housing development. The village roads are narrow and there are no footpaths in a number of areas. There is not a school within the village limit. There is no shop and very limited employment opportunities. Public transport is very sporadic. The proposed increase in population would still not support the addition of such services and so growth in the village should be on a much smaller scale to that proposed.

The size of the proposed development in Norton Lindsey is unacceptable, due to the relative size of the village currently. Any new development of this size will contribute to significant increase in private vehicles in the local area as there are very few public transport services. This would put unacceptable pressure on the local infrastructure and roads. The council are already looking to reduce the speed limit around Norton Lindsey to 50mph from 60mph. I personally have seen the effects of 3 serious accidents on the country roads leading out of the village in the past 2 years.

Norton Lindsey has been identified as a Category 2 village with a proposed allocation of up to 80 houses.

Norton Lindsey does not have the road infrastructure or facilities to support that number of proposed new homes. The current road structure is poor and narrow both in entering and exiting the village. I have witnessed and assisted in two serious car accidents in 2011 which were a cause of the poor road infrastructure and narrow lanes. Any increase in traffic will undoubtedly increase the risk of accidents and the dangers of driving though Norton Lindsey.

Norton Lindsey enjoys a hill top setting with adjacent medieval ridge and furrow fields the Village is very sensitive to development due to the prominent location. It is essential that the nature and character of Norton Lindsey is not compromised by large scale development which could increase the the number of houses by more than 50%.

Norton Lindsey does not fit in with the suggested approach to the broad location of growth (PO3) due to not fulfilling the requirement that: "Any housing development must be built close to existing services and facilities so that people do not have to travel far to get to schools, shops, leisure facilities or workplaces." It should also reduce impact on the environment by both its location and design and not adversely impact on quality environments and historic settings. Clearly Norton Lindsey does not have the required facilities and serious impact will be experienced in the quality environment, location, historic setting and increased risk of accidents if this development is permitted.

Norton Lindsey has been identified as a Category 2 village with a proposed allocation of up to 80 houses.

Norton Lindsey does not have the road infrastructure or facilities to support that number of proposed new homes. The current road structure is poor and narrow both in entering and exiting the village. I have witnessed and assisted in two serious car accidents in 2011 which were a cause of the poor road infrastructure and narrow lanes. Any increase in traffic will undoubtedly increase the risk of accidents and the dangers of driving though Norton Lindsey.

Norton Lindsey enjoys a hill top setting with adjacent medieval ridge and furrow fields the Village is very sensitive to development due to the prominent location. It is essential that the nature and character of Norton Lindsey is not compromised by large scale development which could increase the number of houses by more than 50%.

Norton Lindsey does not fit in with the suggested approach to the broad location of growth (PO3) due to not fulfilling the requirement that: "Any housing development must be built close to existing services and facilities so that people do not have to travel far to get to schools, shops, leisure facilities or workplaces." It should also reduce impact on the environment by both its location and design and not adversely impact on quality environments and historic settings. Clearly Norton Lindsey does not have the required facilities and serious impact will be experienced in the quality environment, location, historic setting and increased risk of accidents if this development is permitted.

Development of housing on the proposed scale is inappropriate for a village of the current size of Norton Lindsey. The infrastructure is not suitable and the character of the village would be destroyed. There is no case on environmental or sustainability grounds for such development away from places of employment. Furthermore, as Norton Lindsey merges with Wolverton and hence Stratford District Council, the plan for Norton Lindsey needs to be developed in full consultation with Stratford.

Norton Lindsey has no shop, only a handful of weekly buses (none to Warwick), limited social facilities (especially for teenagers), no mains gas, no medical facilities, narrow, winding access roads and limited footpaths (making car ownership essential & car travel inevitable). Whilst some more 3 bed family homes and bungalows may be welcomed by some, we believe any future small scale development should be limited to suitable infill & brownfield sites, as and when these become available (as has happened historically). Norton Lindsey should continue its gradual evolution, not have a disproportionate development imposed upon it.

Norton Lindsey has no shop, only a handful of weekly buses (none to Warwick), limited social facilities (especially for teenagers), no mains gas, no medical facilities, narrow, winding access roads and limited footpaths (making car ownership essential & car travel inevitable). Whilst some more 3 bed family homes and bungalows may be welcomed by some, we believe any future small scale development should be limited to suitable infill & brownfield sites, as and when these become available (as has happened historically). Norton Lindsey should continue its gradual evolution, not have a disproportionate development imposed upon it.

The scale of development that could occur within the framework of this new local plan is inappropriate for the size/location of Norton Lindsey. The village already suffers from some past inappropriate ribbon development, which has only be constrained by the Green Belt policies that the council now wish to abandon. Development of the size that would be permitted under the proposals would potentially increase the size of the village population significantly without the required growth in amenities that would be required (swathes of the village have no pavements for example, public transport links are limited to one or two buses a week). It is not realistic to suggest that amenities may grow as the population grows, the village is still too isolated for the catchment area that shops, public transport etc would require to be commercially viable and in these straightened financial times, it is not likely that the council could provide these services. Development on the scale envisaged would likely destroy the very character of a village that the council seek to protect through a conservation area statement which documents that ' Views of surrounding open fields
enhance the ridge top setting of the Conservation Area.'

The proposed volume would increase the village by over 50% and could only be achieved by de-classifying greenbelt and increasing the village envelope. This would have a hugely detremental effect on the character of the village set in a farming community and deplete agricultural land. Increased traffic would overburden an already potentially dangerous road network which necessarily accommodates frequent moving of livestock, farm machinery and horse-riders and increased traffic would be a further danger. The proposals do not accord with the Local Plan which seeks to build new homes close to local amenities.

Development on the scale proposed in the Local Plan would severely impact on the amount of road traffic as there are very limited public transport services. E.g. No bus services to Warwick or Leamington Spa and only 4 buses leaving the village per week. Therefore it is essential for every family to have at least one car and in most cases 2. As a rural location there is frequent movement of livestock, farm machinery and horses exercised on the narrow roads, so increased traffic will create additional dangers. Would adversely affect the quality of the environment and historic setting of the village. My husband and I moved here 10 years ago to get away from busy town/city life so we DO NOT WANT THE PEACE IN NORTON LINDSEY to be compromised in any way.

The minimal facilities of Norton Lindsey and its country lane access could not support the proposed scale of construction without damaging the village environment and completely altering its character. It would also markedly reduce road safety on the lanes around the village.

The Green Belt has protected it from inappropriate development whilst allowing more appropriate housing to be built. The proposal in the Local Plan would be contrary to this and allow hitherto inappropriate development on a large scale. This would inevitably have an overwhelmingly adverse effect on both the village and the surrounding Green Belt.

Norton Lindsey does not need this level of development to sustain the existing community spirit and vibrancy. Many young families have moved to the village over the past few years and whilst we accept that the school is not oversubscribed with children from the village, this coming year's intake is the 1st time in that there will be more children from the village than outside the village (and it looks as though there will be many village children going to the school in the next few years). This is evidence that we don't need new development for village regeneration/sustainability.

Sustainability is key to any developments that take place within communities. Norton Lindsey has been wrongly classified as a category 2 village. There are no regular transport links to places of work or education, there are no medical facilities and no amenities aside a pub.
PO16:Green Belt.
Green belts protect areas for specific reasons and the clever use of infill allows villages to grow sympathetically and not disproportionately as the plan suggests.

A small village fed by narrow roads, liable to flooding in the past, and already used as a 'rat run' by motorists to avoid congestion in the centre of Warwick. The proposed increase in size will:
1. Increase the danger from traffic.
2. Destroy the historic fabric.
3. Will be detrimental to the environment

The potential allocation of 30-80 new houses is disproportionate to the current size of the village and to the growth over the past 15 years.
There are insufficient facilities, employment opportunities or public transport services to fulfill the requirement that new housing must be built close to existing services, and the road structure is unsuitable to cope with the inevitable increase in traffic.

The proposal of up to 80 houses to be built in Norton Lindsey is totally disproportionate in a village which only comprises of 135 dwellings. The huge increase of traffic generated causing considerable congestion as well as have an adverse effect on the environment and climate change. Norton Lindsey is a small village with no shops and a very limited public transport service. There is no employment and Warwick District Council have stated that new development should give people a choice of transport and be near facilities and employment opportunities. None of these are available in Norton Lindsey.

The Council's view is that new housing must be built near existing services and facilities so people have access to schools, shops and workplaces. This contradicts the preferred option of building up to 80 houses in Norton Lindsey where no such services and facilities exist.

Norton Lindsey is located on the Stratford Upon Avon and Warwick District boundaries. There is a major risk of conflict between the Plans by each District Council if close liaison between the two does not take place. The impact could be to decimate Norton Lindsey by effectively doubling the already excessive numbers proposed under the PO document by Warwick District Council.

It is agreed by Warwick District Council that development should take place near employment opportunities. There is no employment in Norton Lindsey and adding houses to the village will not create any further opportunities.

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