The Proposal

The Proposal (HAT15 / SDS6)

Without any consultations, Welwyn Hatfield planning committee have added a new village (Symondshyde village) into the sites selected for development in the district plan (the Local Plan). They are trying to ignore the 1,200+ locals who objected.

The Cabinet Housing and Planning Panel at Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council (WHBC) have now agreed to include an isolated settlement on high grade agricultural land in the Green Belt between Welwyn Garden City, St Albans and Wheathampstead into their Local Plan.  This proposal was referred to as HAT15, but is now referred to as SDS6 by WHBC.  As well as the housing development, the site would also be used for mineral extraction, resulting in a near constant stream of quarry lorries using the surrounding single track roads for around two years. The Save Symondshyde campaign is not against development and recognise that more houses are required. We are however opposed to this unsuitable and unsustainable development, especially since several other more appropriate sites were disregarded.

A bird’s eye view showing the area of the proposed development (HAT15, shown in yellow) together with the HAT1 proposal and GTLAA09.  The amount of lost green belt is considerable and it’s not hard to imagine how the much reduced gaps could be filled in with further sprawl.  The gap between HAT15 and HAT1 is only 1000m – ie. just over half a mile!

Map showing the location of HAT15 and HAT1 relative to the surrounding towns and villages.  HAT15 would clearly punch a hole in the middle of the Green Belt and open up the possibility for future sprawl and coalescence with Hatfield.

The above image illustrates how close the proposed Symondshyde Housing Estate will be to other proposed developments (making it very likely that these areas will coalesce).  No mention of the exact size of the development is made in Gascoyne Cecil’s plans, but it is estimated to be 140 acres – over twice the size of Sandridge and over half the size of Wheathampstead.

Image showing the proposed layout of the housing estate.  There are some green spaces, but it is not clear whether these will be protected or be potentially available for future housing developments.

The map above illustrates how close the proposed development (HAT15/SDS6) is to the St Albans border (Sandridge Ward border shown).  SADC should clearly have been consulted about the development, but were not.  The development is on the periphery of the Welwyn Councillors’ wards – ie. well away from nearly all of their voters. The image also shows that HAT15 would be twice the size of Sandridge.