Full text:
Objection to the Proposed Development of the Fields Between Marsh Green Road and Bradwall Road, Elworth
I strongly object to the proposed development of housing on the fields between Marsh Green Road and Bradwall Road in Elworth.
This is fundamentally the wrong location for a large housing development. It would result in the permanent loss of valuable agricultural land, open countryside, established wildlife habitat, recreational space and an important area of separation between Elworth and Bradwall.
Highway safety and access
The existing road network is simply not capable of accommodating a substantial increase in traffic.
Marsh Green Road is narrow, with vehicles permanently parked along one side, effectively reducing the usable road to a single lane. Vicarage Lane is similarly narrow and permanently parked along one side. The Avenue has vehicles parked along both sides, leaving it so restricted that even single-file traffic can be difficult at busy times.
These are constrained residential roads, not roads capable of safely accommodating traffic from a major new housing development.
Both Marsh Green Road and Vicarage Lane effectively terminate at footpaths. Vicarage Lane also has a blind corner. Adding a significant volume of new traffic to this already severely restricted network would be entirely inappropriate.
The area is already extremely busy, with extensive permanent on-street parking. There is also significant pedestrian movement associated with Elworth Hall Primary School, which is only approximately 0.4 miles from the site. Increasing traffic through these narrow residential roads would inevitably make the area less safe for pedestrians, particularly children walking to school.
Middlewich Road is already heavily used and congested and would carry additional traffic generated by the development. Elworth Church of England Primary School is also situated on Middlewich Road, creating further concerns about the effect of additional traffic on a route already used by children and families.
The local road network has also required repeated repairs, with Middlewich Road already under considerable pressure.
There is simply no justification for placing a major new housing development behind a series of narrow, heavily parked and already congested residential roads.
Flooding and drainage
The suitability of this land for housing is also seriously questionable because of its existing drainage characteristics.
The fields become very boggy following rainfall and contain a stream and drainage ditches. The land is not flat and currently provides open ground through which rainfall can naturally drain and disperse.
Replacing this land with houses, roads, driveways and other hard surfaces would permanently change the existing drainage characteristics of the area and increase the amount of surface water generated by the site.
This is not an appropriate location for substantial residential development when the existing land already becomes heavily waterlogged following rainfall.
Wildlife and biodiversity
The fields are an established and valuable wildlife habitat.
I have personally seen bats, owls, birds, badgers, newts and deer using the area. The site also contains mature oak trees, hedgerows, a stream and drainage ditches.
This is clearly not an ecologically barren development site. It is an established natural environment supporting a wide range of wildlife.
Building over this land would destroy and fragment habitats, remove mature trees and hedgerows and permanently alter an area currently used by wildlife.
The presence of such a diverse range of wildlife is yet another clear indication that this land should remain undeveloped.
Loss of countryside and separation between Elworth and Bradwall
The fields provide an important physical and visual separation between Elworth and Bradwall.
Developing this land would push the built-up area substantially further into the countryside and bring the two settlements closer together.
The resulting development would make Elworth feel considerably larger and more urbanised, fundamentally changing the character of the area.
The open fields are currently an important part of what separates these communities. Once covered in houses, roads and infrastructure, that countryside will be lost permanently.
Loss of an important recreational resource
These fields are not unused land.
They contain official public rights of way and are used by large numbers of local people every day for walking, exercise and access to the countryside.
For many residents, these fields provide an accessible place to walk, enjoy nature and escape the built-up environment. They are an important local recreational and wellbeing resource.
At a time when the surrounding area is already experiencing significant development, removing one of the remaining accessible areas of open countryside would be a serious loss to the community.
Railway
The railway runs directly through the fields and carries frequent passenger and freight trains between Manchester and Crewe, including trains operating day and night.
The open land currently provides a valuable separation between existing residential areas and this busy railway infrastructure.
Building substantial numbers of homes immediately alongside a busy passenger and freight railway would expose a new residential population to significant railway noise, vibration and activity and would fundamentally change the relationship between the existing homes, countryside and railway.
The fact that the railway physically runs through the site makes this particularly unsuitable for residential development.
Pressure on local infrastructure
The surrounding area is already under significant pressure from existing development.
There has already been extensive housebuilding locally, while roads, parking and public services are struggling to cope with existing demand.
Local primary school provision is already under pressure. Secondary education is served by Sandbach Girls’ School and Sandbach Boys’ School, while primary healthcare is provided locally by Ashfields Primary Care Centre.
The local area already experiences significant parking problems and difficulty accessing GP appointments. Adding a substantial number of additional households would place yet more pressure on services that are already struggling to meet existing demand.
Cumulative impact
This development cannot reasonably be viewed in isolation.
Elworth and the wider Sandbach area have already experienced substantial housing development. The cumulative effect of continued development is placing increasing pressure on roads, parking, schools, healthcare, drainage and the character of the local area.
There has to be a point at which the existing community and infrastructure simply cannot reasonably absorb further expansion.
This site is that point.
Conclusion
This is not simply a case of residents objecting to change or being opposed to new housing.
The land itself is fundamentally unsuitable for substantial residential development.
It is actively farmed agricultural land, valuable wildlife habitat, open countryside, an important recreational resource and a vital area of separation between Elworth and Bradwall. It contains mature oak trees, hedgerows, a stream and drainage ditches, becomes extremely boggy following rainfall, is crossed by well-used public rights of way and has a busy passenger and freight railway running directly through it.
The surrounding road network is already severely constrained by narrow roads and extensive permanent on-street parking. Marsh Green Road, Vicarage Lane and The Avenue are simply not appropriate routes for a substantial increase in residential traffic, while Middlewich Road is already heavily used and under pressure.
Adding a major housing development here would mean more traffic, more congestion, more parking pressure, greater pressure on schools and healthcare, loss of countryside, loss of wildlife habitat, loss of recreational space and the erosion of the separation between Elworth and Bradwall.
The community has already accommodated substantial development. This does not mean that every remaining piece of countryside should consequently be treated as suitable for housing.
These fields should remain as they are. I strongly urge Cheshire East Council to refuse the proposed development and protect this land, the surrounding community and the character of Elworth from further inappropriate expansion.
