Green Belt and Settlement Pattern

Introduction

4.1 One of the key objectives of the Plan is to concentrate development into the district's main towns and settlements. This is a central strand of the Plan's sustainable development strategy. Not only will this minimise development on 'greenfield' land and in the countryside, it will also ensure development occurs where it is most accessible and closest to other facilities, so reducing people's need to travel, and where there are existing infrastructure and services to support it.

4.2 The district's settlement pattern is characterised by a number of medium sized towns and villages, situated along main road and railway routes radiating northwards from London and separated by narrow bands of countryside. In addition, there are a number of small villages and sporadic ribbon developments within the countryside, which are generally in more isolated, less accessible locations. It is this settlement pattern which gives the district its unique qualities and should be preserved.

4.3 One of the main policy tools for maintaining this pattern and ensuring urban concentration is the Green Belt. This has been a long-standing feature of planning in the south-east, made necessary by the considerable development pressure around London. The whole of Welwyn Hatfield District lies within the Green Belt, which exerts a strong restraint on urban expansion.

4.4 The purpose of this chapter is to define the hierarchy of settlements within which development can take place and the broad limits to the extent of development. This provides a spatial framework for the rest of the policies in the Plan.

Strategy

4.5 The main objectives of the Plan in respect of the district's Green Belt and settlement pattern are:

1. To maintain the Green Belt as the principal means of restraining the physical expansion of the district's urban areas;

2. To maintain the existing settlement pattern in the district;

3. To concentrate development into the district's main towns and settlements;

4. To maintain areas of special restraint between the urban area and the Green Belt, to be safeguarded to meet future growth needs beyond the Plan period and thereby ensure the permanence of the Green Belt boundaries.

Policies

Definition of the Green Belt

4.6 The whole of the district lies within the Green Belt. Government guidance in PPG2 defines five purposes of including land in the Green Belt:

• To check the unrestricted sprawl of large built up areas;

• To prevent neighbouring towns from merging into one another;

• To safeguard the surrounding countryside from further encroachment;

• To preserve the setting and special character of historic towns; and

• To assist in urban regeneration, by encouraging the recycling of derelict and other urban land.

4.7 In addition, PPG2 states that the Green Belt has a positive role to play in fulfilling the following purposes:

• To provide opportunities for access to the open countryside for the urban population;

• To provide opportunities for outdoor sport and outdoor recreation near urban areas;

• To retain attractive landscapes, and enhance landscapes, near to where people live;

• To improve damaged and derelict land around towns;

• To secure nature conservation interest; and

• To retain land in agricultural, forestry and related uses.

4.8 Policy 5 of the Structure Plan confirms that the Green Belt will be maintained in the south of Hertfordshire which includes all of the land in Welwyn Hatfield. The Council recognises the important role of the Green Belt in the district, particularly in preventing its towns and settlements from merging into one another, preserving the countryside and concentrating development into its urban areas. As such it is a key element in achieving sustainable development and must be maintained.

4.9 The towns and settlements specified below where development will be concentrated are excluded from the Green Belt. The detailed boundaries of the Green Belt around these settlements are defined on the Proposals Map. These boundaries were defined in the first District Plan adopted in 1993 to take account of the long-term development needs of the district. In preparing this Plan the Council has given consideration as to whether there is a need to alter the Green Belt boundaries to accommodate the development needs of the district up to 2011 and beyond, but is satisfied that these needs can be accommodated on sites identified within the towns and specified settlements excluded from the Green Belt.

Towns and Specified Settlements

4.10 The district has two main towns - Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield. They are the main sources of housing for the district, contain the major shopping and service facilities, schools and community facilities and are the principal locations for local employment. They are both well served by public transport - bus and rail - and by road. Whilst not being fully self-sufficient, as new towns they are more self-contained than many other towns of their size. In short they offer the best opportunity for sustainable development. They will be the principal focus for development in the district during the Plan period, in accordance with Policy 6 of the Structure Plan.

4.11 The district also comprises a number of large villages with populations of between 1,000 and 4,000. The largest of these are Cuffley, Brookmans Park, Welwyn, Welham Green, Mardley Heath and Oaklands; the smallest are Digswell and Woolmer Green. Principally they are a source of housing for their communities, but they also have shops and services, schools and community facilities, in varying ranges. The largest, except for Mardley Heath and Oaklands, have large village centres, with a wide range of shops and services, pubs and restaurants, libraries, community halls, surgeries and schools. The smallest villages have a handful of shops and facilities at their centre. Brookmans Park, Cuffley, Digswell and Welham Green are all served by rail; the other three have main road access. Whilst less self-sufficient and dependent to a certain extent on the two towns for employment and main services, they all support communities and are very accessible. In addition, there is Little Heath on the southern boundary of the district. Little Heath is a part of the town of Potters Bar, located in Hertsmere borough, from where it is well served by shops, services and employment. All of these settlements offer opportunities for sustainable development. They are identified as 'Specified Settlements' within this Plan, where, in accordance with Policy 6 of the Structure Plan, limited development will be allowed which is compatible with the maintenance and enhancement of their character and the maintenance of their Green Belt boundaries.

Settlements within the Green Belt

4.12 The district comprises a number of smaller settlements, including rural villages and areas of sporadic or ribbon development, which reflect the historical settlement pattern of the district based around agriculture. These are Essendon, Northaw, Newgate Street, Lemsford, Ayot St Lawrence, Ayot Green and St Peter, Burnham Green, Stanborough, Mill Green, Bullen's Green, Bell Bar, Swanley Bar, Wild Hill and Woodside. They are all located within the Green Belt and as such are subject to the general presumption against inappropriate development in the Green Belt set out in PPG2. The forms of development considered appropriate within the Green Belt are identified in Policy RA1, which applies to all of these settlements.

4.13 However, it is possible to distinguish two categories of Green Belt settlement from the above list to which the Plan applies different policy approaches:

1. Rural villages supporting a number of facilities, such as a primary school and/or a church, a village hall, a shop/post office and pubs, and as such, have a degree of self sufficiency to sustain their communities. These are Essendon, Northaw, Newgate Street and Lemsford.

2. Other small settlements, which vary in size, but comprise mainly housing grouped either around a green, in a ribbon form or more sporadically arranged, with very few or no facilities. These are Ayot St Lawrence, Ayot Green and St Peter, Burnham Green, Stanborough, Mill Green, Bullen's Green, Bell Bar, Swanley Bar, Wild Hill and Woodside.

4.14 Policy 6 of the Structure Plan recognises that development in smaller Green Belt settlements can be accommodated to support facilities and services needed and to meet the employment and housing needs for the settlement and its surrounding area. As part of the sustainable development strategy the Plan seeks to encourage development to sustain rural communities. Therefore, as an exception, the Council will support development in the Rural Villages listed in paragraph 4.13(a) above, where, in accordance with the Structure Plan, it is required to support the housing and employment, local facilities and service needs of the settlements and the communities they support. Policy RA2 sets out the circumstances for this.

4.15 Within the remaining Green Belt settlements listed in paragraph 4.13(b), in line with the strategy of the Plan, the Council wishes to see existing facilities retained. Policies RA12 and RA13 in particular set out the circumstances where this is appropriate.

Areas of Special Restraint

4.16 PPG2 advises that when reviewing local plans, local planning authorities should consider the boundaries of the Green Belt in relation to a timescale which is longer than that normally adopted for other aspects of the Plan. In order to ensure the protection of the Green Belt within this longer term, it may mean safeguarding land between the urban area and the Green Belt which may be required to meet longer-term needs.

4.17 The 1993 adopted District Plan identified such an area of land, designated as an Area of Special Restraint, at Panshanger Aerodrome on the eastern edge of Welwyn Garden City. In preparing this Plan, the Council has given consideration to whether this land should be released to meet development requirements in the period up to 2011. The Council is satisfied that these requirements can be accommodated on the sites identified within the towns and specified settlements elsewhere in the Plan. However, in order to maintain the permanence of the Green Belt this Area of Special Restraint has been retained and will be safeguarded to allow space for the development needs of the area beyond the Plan period. This land is not required for development in the period up to 2011. Its release for development after 2011 will be a matter for consideration in future reviews of the Plan, in the light of longer-term development requirements and advice on the sequential selection of land for development contained in government guidance. Should this land be released for development in the longer term an area of land on its northern edge has been identified for structural landscaping to be provided in advance of any development to minimise its impact on the surrounding landscape and long distance views.