New homes set to see village almost double in size

A village could almost double in size after planners recommended a 760-home development be approved.

Redrow Homes Ltd's proposals for housing in High Halstow on the Hoo Peninsula in Kent are for a 100-acre site between Christmas Lane, Sharnal Street and Britannia Road.

First submitted in April 2023, if given the go ahead, the village and surrounding area may double its current population of 1,800 residents.

Objectors to the application say it "fails in every respect" of sustainability.

Alongside the homes, plans include up to 1,000sq m of space for shops, a new primary school, parks and open spaces.

Nearly £24m in contributions towards local infrastructure would also be required as a condition of any approval, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

That would include £2m for healthcare provision to cope with new patients and £6.8m for improvements to four roundabouts, as well as the wider road network.

Funding totalling £11.5m would also go towards the creation of a primary school with 420 places, with £1.3m spent on mitigating the impact of the build on the Northward Hill Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Managed by the RSPB it is the UK's largest breeding ground for herons and a habitat for rare moths.

There were 62 letters of objection to the plans, with concerns about the loss of agricultural land, the harm to the countryside's character and the increased strain on infrastructure.

Three ward councillors from the Independent Group, George Crozer, Michael Pearce and Ron Sands, also objected, along with High Halstow Parish Council.

Crozer said he and others would be making the argument for deferral at a planning committee meeting on 11 March.

He described that size of application for a rural area as "not sustainable" due to residents' "real dependency on cars" and the already oversubscribed infrastructure, road and public transport system.

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