Battle ramps up over new Norfolk 'railway village' homes

What would be Norfolk’s first new town in centuries could see up to 5,000 homes built on farming land between the villages of North Elmham, Billingford and Bintree, north of Dereham.

The settlement has been provisionally named the 'railway village', as it would lie close to the Mid Norfolk Railway, a heritage route which passes through North Elmham and connects with the National Rail network at Wymondham.

A train on the Mid Norfolk Railway (Image: Archant)

But opposition against the mooted new town is gathering pace, with communities urged to join forces to make clear their opposition to the idea.

Michael Gove (Image: PA Wire/PA Images)

One of Norfolk's MPs is writing to Michael Gove to make clear that the county does not believe the area is the right place for a new town of that size.

No planning application for the development has been lodged.

It was speculatively put forward by Bristol-based planning consultant Black Box Planning as part of Breckland Council's process to develop a new local plan - a blueprint for where development could happen in the district over the next 20 years.

That process saw a call for sites, with the 'railway village' proposal put forward. The council will need to decide which sites are included in its local plan - and which are rejected.

A similar proposal, for 10,000 homes on the same stretch of land, was made back in 2018, but was dismissed by the council after opposition.

And campaigners hope to kill off the latest suggestion by joining forces to make clear the weight of opposition.

The campaign group CANT (Campaign Against the New Town), which helped lead opposition to previous plans, has been revived and is urging people to make their views known to the council.

At a recent meeting, representatives from parish councils joined councillors Bill Borrett and Gordon Bambridge, plus Mid Norfolk MP George Freeman, to consider how best to oppose the new town.

Norfolk MP George Freeman (Image: Archant)

Mr Freeman said a "united front" will be needed to send a message to Breckland Council that the development is not wanted.

A meeting of all the parish councils in the affected area will be convened after next week's local elections, to encourage them all to write to Breckland Council formally to express their concerns.

People can also have their say via the consultation over the local plan on Breckland Council's website.

Conservative MP Mr Freeman said he was optimistic the council would not include the site within its local plan - but the stronger the message communities can give, the better.

Not being included in the plan would make it harder for any future planning application for the new town to secure permission.

Mr Freeman said: "I have not seen any evidence to suggest that a garden town or village would be appropriate in this part of Mid Norfolk, and given the rural and inaccessible nature of North Elmham and the surrounding villages, the already serious congestion on the nearby road network and the nationally significant environmental and habitat importance of the Wensum Valley, I cannot envisage any circumstances in which this idea could be taken seriously.

"To my mind, it would make far more sense for such a significant level of growth to be focussed down closer to the A11 corridor – which Breckland Council themselves have, rightly, recognised is the key growth artery in our region and have tried to focus the bulk of the district’s future growth."

Mr Freeman is writing to Mr Gove, the secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities, to stress any new towns or garden villages should not be allowed in inappropriate locations.

ANALYSIS

In a county like Norfolk, where we prize our beautiful countryside so highly, there will always be tension over the need for new housing and protecting what makes the place we live so special.

There is always fierce debate over where homes should (and shouldn't) be built, with councils charged with getting policies in place to ensure they are constructed in areas which are deemed appropriate.

Should homes be built mainly in major areas, such as Norwich, Great Yarmouth and King's Lynn, close to jobs and services such as GP surgeries and schools?

Or, especially given the way home working has surged since the Covid pandemic, does it make more sense to spread them out among smaller settlements?

One idea which keeps cropping up is for a new garden village or garden town.

There have previously been suggestions for such a settlement in Honingham or at Hethel, but those have not moved beyond the drawing board stage.

And in 2018, a proposal for a new settlement of up to 10,000 homes between the villages of North Elmham, Billingford and Bintree, was unveiled.

It was not well received, with campaign groups formed to oppose the proposals. It appeared to have fizzled out.

But, when it came to the time for Breckland Council to develop a blueprint for where housing could be acceptable in the next couple of decades, it was revived.

A smaller, 5,000 'railway town' - in the same location as the previous proposal - was put forward as part of the council's invitation to developers to suggest possible sites for housing.

This is not a fully-formed proposal and, the council may well turn round and say it's not an appropriate site, excluding it from the local plan.

Certainly, the council is coming under pressure to do that, with parish councils, district and county councillors, and MP George Freeman against the possible new town in that location.

Whatever happens with this case, it is unlikely to be the last we hear of attempts to get a garden village or town built somewhere in the county.