Three Rivers residents call on council to fight housing targets

The Three Rivers Joint Residents' Association has started a petition calling for Three Rivers District Council to withdraw its current Local Plan.

Campaigners believe the sites put forward by the council to meet Government housing targets could see homes built without "obvious demand".

Their biggest argument is they believe only half of the 9,600 homes the council has been tasked to find room for over the next 15 years or so are actually needed.

The council is currently consulting with its residents on its Local Plan - an important document that will shape development and growth in Three Rivers up until 2038.

More than 70 sites - many of which are green belt - across areas like Rickmansworth, Abbots Langley, Croxley Green, Chorleywood, and Maple Cross are being seriously considered to be developed into housing - prompting major concern among existing residents.

So far, 762 people have signed the joint resident association petition which calls for the council to withdraw the plan and "revise it to better protect our environment whilst delivering the homes we need".

Among those leading the fight to protect Three Rivers' greenbelt is Gary Ansell, chairman of Kings Langley & District Residents' Association, and David Zerny from Chandler's Cross Residents' Association.

David Zerny pictured in Chorleywood

Mr Zerny, who based his Independent campaign on protecting the greenbelt in the May local elections, said: "What is being proposed is catastrophic. We will be deprived of green space.

"We all have a problem with the council not pushing back on the total number of houses. It's a huge overstatement of the housing need. We’ve got some very clever people - statisticians - who have reworked the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and the actual need is much lower."

This research has been led by Jon Bishop, a member of Chorleywood Residents' Association and an experienced analyst with a "strong understanding of data quality and statistical modelling".

Based on more recent 2018 ONS figures and projected growth in Three Rivers up to 2043 - particularly within the 20 to 40 age group - Mr Bishop concludes the number of homes needed over the next 15 years is 4,577, which is down on the current target of 9,600.

He adds that the local plan would need to find new space for 1,818 homes, potentially within the green belt. Currently, 9,207 homes are proposed on green belt.

Mr Ansell said: "There is a need to be build homes but in the right places. Kings Langley needs two bed small homes for kids growing up that need to stay in the area. It needs affordable homes. I'm worried about 893 homes and a school on pristine greenbelt behind Kings Langley station.

"The council needs to go back to the Government and say the figures are wrong, before it's too late."

Gary Ansell

Mr Zerny added: "We have been told Government will take over planning departments (if it doesn't meet housing targets). We’ve been reliably informed by bodies such as the London Greenbelt Council that this has never happened. It’s an idle threat."

Three Rivers district councillor Matthew Bedford, who is the lead member on the council's local plan, told the Observer the council is as "concerned" as residents about the level of housing the Conservative Government is expecting to be built in Three Rivers.

He said: "The current Government figures are based on forecasts made by the ONS in 2014. We know that more recent projections from the ONS in 2018 would result in lower numbers for Three Rivers.

"Unfortunately the government explicitly decided in December that councils would not be allowed to use more recent projections and must continue to base their plans on the 2014 data, even though it is out-of-date."

Lib Dem councillors Stephen Giles-Medhurst and Matthew Bedford in Bedmond (Image: Cllr Sara Bedford)

On Wednesday, Cllr Bedford announced the Liberal Democrat-run administration has extended the local plan public consultation from July 23 until August 20.

The Lib Dems claimed to have made a stand earlier this year when members announced it would be refusing to put forward several sites.

Related: Council to 'refuse' to build on certain greenbelt sites

Cllr Bedford added: "We still have a long way to go with the local plan process. Once we review and analyse the results of the current consultation, the list of sites may be adjusted and there will be a further round of public consultation towards the end of this year before a public inquiry in the second half of next year.

"At the inquiry, residents will be able to make representations on why sites should not be developed; while landowners will be able to present why they feel their sites should be allocated for development.

"The Planning Inspectorate will make the final decisions."

To take part in the consultation visit https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/localplan