Parish Council Meetings

The Annual Parish Meeting will be held at

6pm on Monday 20 May 2024

followed by the Annual Meeting of the Parish Council

in Edgcott Village Hall

TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING ACT 1990 – SECTION 78

APPEAL MADE BY MINISTRY OF JUSTICE

LAND ADJACENT TO HMP SPRINGHILL AND HMP GRENDON, SPRINGHILL ROAD, GRENDON UNDERWOOD HP18 0TL

APPLICATION REF: 21/02851/AOP

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) submitted an outline planning application for a new prison next to the existing prisons in June 2021, which was refused by the Council’s planning committee in March 2022.

The MoJ appealed this decision in September 2022 which was subsequently referred by the Planning Inspectorate to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) to make the decision in January 2023.

DLUHC reached a decision on 30 January 2024 to grant outline planning permission subject to conditions for a new category C prison next to HMPs Grendon and Springhill.

The MoJ will now prepare and submit a ‘Reserved Matters Application’ (RMA). The RMA will cover the outstanding details of the outline application proposal, which includes the appearance of the prison, the access and the layout.

Edgcott and Grendon Underwood Parish Councils are now considering all options that are reasonably available to contest this decision.

The DLUHC decision and the Inspectorate Report can be seen in full on the Buckinghamshire Council Planning Portal.

 

 

NO MEGA PRISON IN GRENDON UNDERWOOD

TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING ACT 1990 APPEAL UNDER SECTION 78

APPEAL INQUIRY

The result of the Appeal was expected in September but has now been delayed until January 2024

 

Details of the Public hearing are below:

 

MoJ Appeal submitted - 29th September 2022

The appeal will be against - Buckinghamshire Council

For - refusal of outline planning permission (ref. 21/02851/AOP)

Appellant(s) name - Ministry of Justice

Site address - HMP Grendon, Springhill Road, Grendon Underwood, Buckinghamshire HP18 0TL

Description of development - Outline Planning Application with all matters reserved except for access, layout and scale for the construction of a new Category C prison (up to 67,000 sqm GEA) within a secure perimeter fence together with access, parking, landscaping and associated engineering work at HMP Grendon, Springhill Road, Grendon Underwood, Buckinghamshire HP18 0TL

Planning application number - 21/02851/AOP

Submission date of appeal – 29th September 2022

Proposed duration of inquiry in days – 14 days

The decision in question was made at a meeting of the Buckinghamshire Council Strategic Sites Committee held 24th March 2022. The decision was unanimous to refuse.
GUPC would like to thank all speakers and supporters.

The full session is available to view at https://buckinghamshire.public-i.tv/core/portal/webcast_interactive/658191/start_time/120000/tab/feedback

HM PRISON SPRINGHILL PLANNING APPLICATION

Thank you to all who contacted us about the following planning applications.  We have taken onboard your concerns and have submitted our objection (below) via the online planning portal today.  We are working very closely with Grendon Underwood PC who are also submitting an objection to Buckinghamshire Council.

We urge you to submit your own objections and are very happy for you to refer to our objection below and put into your own words.

 

22/01900/ALB and APP | Listed Building application for demolish existing boiler house. Proposed development of two new houseblocks, training centre, staff offices, kitchen storage building and associated car parking and landscaping, alternation and reinstating existing wall | Hm Prison Grendon Springhill Road Grendon Underwood Buckinghamshire HP18 0TL

Edgcott Parish Council wish to object to the above mentioned applications on the following grounds.

Location

The location of HMP Springhill is such that it has only limited access by non-car modes of travel. The absence of adequate infrastructure and the sites remoteness from major built up areas is such that it is already reliant on the use of the private car. The additional daily traffic generated by staff, visitors and ancilliary daily users to an expanded prison would be  contrary to local and national transport policy. The development is therefore contrary to policies S1 and T1 of the Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan, paragraphs 7, 8 and 105 of the National Planning Policy Framework, Buckinghamshire Council Local Transport Plan 4 (adopted April 2016) and the Buckinghamshire Council Highways Development Management Guidance document (adopted July 2018).

There is a low level of unemployment in the region and affordable housing for staff is limited and hence recruitment will be challenging and new staff will live over a widespread area and depend mainly on the car to travel.

There are currently two other major infrastructure projects ongoing in the North Bucks area, namely EWR and HS2, impacting on villages such as Edgcott, Grendon Underwood, Steeple Claydon, Charndon, Poundon, Gawcott and Twyford and many others. To add a third infrastructure project by expanding HMP Springhill which would overlap with the timescale of the current projects, would result in additional construction traffic on our roads and  cause further harm to the local area.

There would be a significant increase in traffic both during and after construction. Traffic currently passing through Edgcott has been recorded at close to 4,000 vehicles per day (May 2021).

 

Sustainability

It is important to note that the unsustainable nature of this location has been independently acknowledged by two independent appeal Inspectors who dismissed residential schemes on land at Edgcott Road (PINS reference 3255772) and South of Springhill Road (PINS reference 3185166) respectively.

This intrusion into open countryside would result in adverse landscape and visual impacts on the site and would give rise to harmful effects on the character of this area contrary to the adopted Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan polices BE2, NE4 and NE5 and paragraphs 174 and 185 of the National Planning Policy Framework.

The proposal does not constitute sustainable development that fulfils a social, economic and environmental role, and the proposal would be contrary to the requirements of policies T1 and T5 of the Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan and paragraphs 57 and 58 of the National Planning Policy Framework.

 

Visual Impact

The proposed accommodation blocks will be clearly visible from residential properties in Main Street, Grendon Underwood and in particular from Hall Cottages. The proposed car park will also be intrusive to Springhill Road properties with regard to noise and light pollution.

 

Heritage

The development includes a proposed car park on greenfield land. The development into the countryside on an elevated site would be intrusive and visible from a large number of nearby heritage assets.. The development is therefore contrary to policy BE1 of the Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan, Section 66 of the Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 and Section 16 of the National Planning Policy Framework.

 

Ecology

The existing HMP Springhill features an ecology area and the area contains much wildlife including a badger set and 65 species of birds including 15 on the red list and 13 on the amber list. Great Crested Newts are also present in the pond on the site as well as in a large number of surrounding ponds recently surveyed. In  addition, nine species of foraging bats were recorded including two rare species (Bechstein’s and Barbastelle). Noise, light pollution and general disturbance from the construction and subsequent increased operational traffic would cause significant disruption to the wildlife and some of it may be permanently displaced from the site.

 

Flooding

There is an existing and demonstrable issue with surface water both in and around the vicinity of the site, evidenced by residents photographs, which could be made worse with this expansion of HMP Springhill.

The local mains drainage system is currently at full capacity and will be unable to cope with an additional 120 residents plus extra staff and visitors. The sewage pollution in our local watercourses is well documented and they will suffer from further pollution if this expansion goes ahead.

 

Public Right of Way

A public footpath GUN/17/1 crosses the proposed car park and adequate provisions do not appear to have been made to address this issue.

The public footpath network around the existing site is enjoyed by many local residents. However many residents may choose not to use some of the public footpaths due to safety concerns not just from vehicles using the car park but also from an additional 120 inmates roaming free in the close vicinity.

 

Security

Since the construction of the two existing prisons and the Springhill housing estate in the 1950s and 1960s no further significant developments have taken place on the prison site or the surrounding area. Hence this area has been a ‘settled environment and landscape’ for around 60 years. Being an Open Prison there have always been drop offs of contraband nearby. However, in recent years, these drop offs have been more of a concern as they can involve drugs. An additional 120 potential recipients will cause great concern to residents particularly those with children.      

In conclusion Edgcott Parish Council respectfully requests that the planning applications are refused.

Following the initial objection by Edgcott Parish Council to the above planning applications the following additional comments and objections are also submitted for your consideration.

Heritage and Green Field space

A site dossier for Grendon Hall has been prepared as part of The Buckinghamshire Gardens Trust (BGT) Research and Recording Project, begun in 2014. This Grendon Hall site, HER no: 1169100000, is one of several hundred designed landscapes county‐wide identified by Bucks County Council in 1998 (including Milton Keynes District) as potentially retaining evidence of historic interest, as part of the Historic Parks and Gardens Register Review project carried out for English Heritage (now Historic England) (BCC Report No. 508).

Having regard to this dossier it is considered that the proposal would have a significant, irreversible and harmful impact on the settings of Grendon Hall and nearby Grade II listed properties.

In addition there would also be harm to the setting of the Grade II listed gate piers and metal fencing at the current entrance to the prison site as well as the parkland. An ancient metal gate close to the proposed car park would also be lost.

The green field where the new car park is proposed is part of the historic park and garden for Grendon Hall and this proposed intrusion into the countryside would result in further irreversible harm.

 

 

Visual Impact

A Landscape Visual Impact Assessment ( LVIA) produced by Pegasus on behalf of the Ministry of Justice shows that the majority of the supporting photographs used in this LVIA have been taken from selected locations that do not represent the worst case situations. The positions selected suggest a level of bias which undermines the value of the LVIA and it is difficult to regard this as a fair and objective report and hence this should be taken into account in considering the planning applications.

In particular the visual impact from residential properties in Springhill Road, Hall Cottages and Main Street Grendon Underwood, together with views from Mill Hill, is not fully and fairly reflected in this photomontage.

The comments under Description of Change in Part 2 of the LVIA are repetitively consistent by saying “the proposed buildings will be largely screened by intervening built form or any new built form visible will be seen in the context of the existing prison”

This suggests that as a prison is already on site then the proposed new buildings thereon are of no visual significance and what appears to be a biased photomontage attempts, unsuccessfully, to support this opinion.

In the light of these additional representations Edgcott Parish Council respectfully requests that the two applications are refused.

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THANK YOU ALL!!

Today the Buckinghamshire Councils Strategic Planning Committee (WEBCAST CAN BE FOUND HERE) very rightly unanimously refused the planning application submitted by the Ministry of Justice to build a new Category C prison at HMP Grendon.

It is thanks to everyone in our local communities who supported our campaign against this planning application that this has happened. You all got on board and attended events, wrote objections and came together as communities to fight this. So a massive thank you to you all - your voices were listened to and this was reflected in the UNANIMOUS refusal of this very badly thought out application. The MoJ didn’t stand a chance today.

Also massive thanks for the hard work and support from our MP Greg Smith, local County Councillors Angela MacPherson, Frank Mahon and Michael Rand, members of  the No More Prisons Working Group consisting of residents, and members from Grendon Underwood and Edgcott Parish Councils – Rod Baker, Roger Behagg, GUPC Clerk Barry Martindale, Cllr’s Kim Moloney, Peter Harper, Andy Benfield, Paul Jackman, Steph Gassor and the countless other people who have had input of some kind or another throughout the last, hectic 15 months. A special mention to Rod for the very many documents that he created for us all to use, his extensive research and great team leading skills. 

So thank you all – without this amazing community effort we might have been in a totally different situation tonight.

 

Statement from Buckinghamshire Council

24 March 2022

Grendon Underwood prison planning application

​

Alan Turner, Chairman of Buckinghamshire Council’s Strategic Sites Committee said:

“Buckinghamshire Council’s Strategic Sites Committee has today unanimously voted against the planning application for a new Category C prison at Grendon Underwood.

“After careful consideration the Committee felt that the combined effects on the local area in terms of sustainability, heritage and the environment would have an overriding negative impact. There was also a feeling that not enough consideration has been given to alternative sites which could be more suitable for such a facility.

“Whilst the Committee acknowledges the efforts made by the applicant for offsetting some of the concerns raised during the application process, the overarching sentiment is that the scale of this proposed development would irreparably alter the nature of this rural and historic landscape. 

“Taking all factors into account and giving fair consideration to all viewpoints, our decision goes in favour of the officer recommendation to refuse this planning application.”

 

NO MEGA PRISON IN GRENDON UNDERWOOD

EDGCOTT PARISH AND GRENDON UNDERWOOD COUNCIL'S

OBJECTION CAN BE FOUND

HERE

21/02851/AOP: Outline Planning Application with all matters reserved except for access, layout and scale for the construction of a new Category C prison (up to 67,000 sqm GEA) within a secure perimeter fence together with access, parking, landscaping and associated engineering works. At: Hm Prison Grendon Springhill Road Grendon Underwood Buckinghamshire HP18 0TL

The recently displayed yellow Planning Notices have now provided us with a further period until 3rd December 2021 to make any additional comments and objections in respect of this planning application.

Should you feel that the opportunity for your voice to be heard had been lost then please take advantage of this extension of time to inform the Planning Officer of your concerns whether it be for the first time or for extra comments.   

Buckinghamshire Council has advised that the main reason for the re-consultation is due to layout now formally being considered as part of this application.

Edgcott and Grendon Underwood Parish Councils continue to submit their comments where appropriate in respect of any submissions made on the Planning Portal and in particular those made by consultees on various planning matters.  

As before your submissions can be made as comments directly onto the Buckinghamshire Council Planning Portal if less than 6000 characters otherwise:-

By email              devcontrol.av@buckinghamshire.gov.uk

or

By post –             Planning Department

Buckinghamshire Council

Aylesbury Vale Area Office

The Gateway

Gatehouse Road. Aylesbury

 HP19 8FF