Histon & Impington neighbourhood plan ver 1.0 jan 18 update 2

Histon & Impington Neighbourhood
Plan
(the Plan)
Version 1.0
January 2018

But first a reminder of why a Neighbourhood Plan
is so important
Money: government planning rules levy a Community
Infrastructure Levy (CIL) on new developments and
normally 15% of what it gets is passed on to parish
councils. Those with an NP get 25%.
Developers: if there’s an NP then it adds to the set of
rules that control development in the community. For
example if our Plan says no new housing somewhere
then developers have to take note.
Capital planning: the Parish Council is ambitious to add
to the amenities of the community but it can’t afford to
do everything. With an NP it will have the mechanism
to set priorities and to plan accordingly.

The Plan territory is just Histon & Impington north
of the A14
• This excludes King’s Meadow which would
more sensibly be a part of the City
• It also excludes that part of Impington south
east of the A14/B1049 junction which will
be a part of the Darwin Green development
• However it does include much green belt
land north, west and east of the Community

It’s close to Cambridge but not a part of it
• About 4000 houses and flats, a population
of about 10000
• Cut north south by the B1049
• The Busway cuts the Community east west

And it’s a very complete community with many
facilities
• About 4000 houses and flats, a population
of about 10000
• Cut north south by the B1049
• The Busway cuts the Community east west
• Vision Park provides employment for 2000
people and 400 work at the jam factory
• There’s a vibrant High Street and good
schools but the GP practice is capacity
limited;
• And some, but not enough, open space.

It is tightly bounded by the Green Belt
• This is good news and bad news.
• The good news is that it should limit
opportunities for developers; but
• The bad news is that it also limits
opportunities to bring forward
developments which would provide
affordable housing for the Community

And within this it is a compact community
• Most homes are within 800m of one of two
community centres:
• The Post Office in the High Street
• The Guided Bus stop

The demography of the community is interesting
• It’s noticeably changed in the last 10 years or so;
• More young families, fewer older people.
• There’s a dip in population as young people leave the Community which recovers when they
return to start families;
• That’s the opposite of Cambridge.
• It’s diverse in terms of the number of people who live here who were born outside the UK
• This is evidenced in the IVC school roll
• Many of these people come from the EU to work but there are also many people of all nationalities who
are connected with Cambridge University and Addenbrookes.

We ran a big survey 12 months ago: it told us what
we already know
• People like living here, value its identity and want it to remain ‘safe and friendly’;
• The community holds a range of views about building on the Green Belt but may accept the
need for more development if there is to be more affordable housing;
• There’s a particular concern about medical facilities. There’s a similar one about school
provision;
• Traffic and public transport are major bugbears. The B1049 on the one hand is a negative
whilst the bus services, including the guided bus, do not serve the community well;
• There’s a developing theme that we need to do more to support young and older (and less
able) people locally
• Parking and getting around the Community (walking and cycling) need to be improved; and
• The High Street is just fine, don’t meddle with it.

Enventure’s conclusions seem pretty spot on

Quantitatively the numbers largely reinforce these
messages
importance
Need to
improve

Overall community satisfaction is good but there
are issues …
Maintaining the ‘village character’ of the Community
Tackling the blight of the B1049
Providing sufficient (and top quality) healthcare and education
Supporting older and young people
Addressing crime and anti-social behaviour
Maintaining the roads, cycle paths and footways
Improving public transport
House prices and the shortage of affordable housing

The Neighbourhood Plan cannot address all of
them

First a look at how it should all fit together …
Projects
what must we do to
realise our policies?
Issues
what limits our ability
to be successful?
Vision
what do we want to
look like in the future?
Priorities
what's important to
deliver our vision?
Policies
what must we enable
to make them happen?
Principles
what characteristics
shape our community?
what do we measure
our policies against
15 Jan 18 Histon & Impington Neighbourhood Plan 14

We’ve done a lot of thinking and talking
• We’ve got a vision
15

Our five key priorities seemed sound then, but
they’re now six
To encourage the growth and success of the retail, leisure and other commercial businesses of the
villages.
To ensure the villages’ community infrastructure (clubs and societies, open spaces and events)
develops and adapts to their emerging and changing demographic.
To ensure a sufficient supply of sustainable and high quality housing (including affordable homes
and small and larger units which address changing demographic demand) within the villages.
To support the community in continuing to make the villages safe, secure, supportive and
welcoming for all; to enable everyone to live active and fulfilling lives
To develop a network of sustainable, accessible transport links within and around the villages to
create safe and inviting routes for all and especially for pedestrians and cyclists.
To protect the essential character of the Community: its balance of retail, employment and
residential, and of its village heritage with its association with the Cambridge economy

Our six key priorities seem sound (in brief)
17
Economic success
Vibrant community
Housing for all
Getting around
Safe, secure & supporting
Essential character

What exactly is this
‘essential character’?
• It’s three elements really.
 We are a mixed
community
 We are dynamic
 We are self-sufficient
• These add up to a
community which is
resilient: being prepared, as
the world changes, to
respond and so to maintain
and improve the quality of
our lives

We’ve continued to do a lot of thinking and talking
• We’ve got a vision
• Our five key priorities seem sound
• Our cross-cutting themes continue to make sense
• Digital village
• Sustainable community
• Diverse and inclusive
• Heritage and design
• We now see these as the essential test of our policies
six!

There are 18 policies addressing
these priorities
general policies
site specific
policies
conditional
policies
visionprioritiespolicies
Histon &
Impington
social
infrastructure
housing for all getting around
vibrant
community
STATION
exception sites
Bypass Farm
local green space
Manor Park Field
essential
character
economic success
retail and the
High Street
employment
high quality
design
the Infants
School
affordable
housing
meeting local
needs
sustainable
development
the Windmill
retail outlets
the High Street
the Tesco site
the jam factory
Vision Park
interesting
buildings
size, style and
location

Essential character
To protect the essential character of the Community: its balance of retail, employment and residential, and of
its village heritage with its association with the Cambridge economy.

HINP01 high quality design
• Intent: to encourage thoughtful and
imaginative development which is of high
design quality, sustainable and responsive
to needs currently and in the future.
• Key points:
• Conforms with H&I Design Guide (appendix 1 of
the Plan)
• Responsive to needs of residents
• Uses best available technologies
• Addresses all-round sustainability
• Protects existing single story properties
HINP03 size, scale and location of new housing
development
• Intent: to ensure that new housing
development is supportive of Histon &
Impington retaining its ‘essential character’
…
• Key points:
• Related to existing pattern
• Within/adjacent to the built-up area
• Delivers infrastructure if needed
• Within 800m of a centre with safe and direct
pedestrian/cycle access
• No more than about 50 dwellings
Two policies focus on influencing new
developments and redevelopments

We don’t want to lose our heritage: HINP02
interesting buildings
• Intent: to protect non-designated heritage
assets(interesting buildings) which are
essential parts of the Community’s heritage
• Key points:
Proposals relating to a non-designated heritage
asset must take a balanced judgement having
regard to the scale of any harm or loss and the
significance of the heritage asset.
The interesting buildings register is appendix IV
of the Plan

If there’s a Community icon it’s the windmill:
HINP04 the Windmill
• Intent: to maintain the Windmill as a part of
our heritage, not just as a building but as a
full working example.
• Key points:
Development proposals within the zone shown
on the map will not be supported if they would
cause loss of wind to Impington Mill at
Cambridge Road. Determination will be by the
Molenbiotoop method.
The Parish Council will work together with
SCDC, landowners and other stakeholders to
ensure that trees and other vegetation within
the free zone do not cause loss of wind.

Economic success
To encourage the growth and success of the retail, leisure and other commercial businesses of the villages.
There are two parts to this priority: encouraging High Street commerce and maintaining employment. First
High Street commerce

We need to protect our super retail offering:
HINP05 retail outlets
• Intent: to protect the retail offering in the
Community and thereby to support the
viability and vitality of the High Street
• Key points:
Development proposals that lead to a loss of
retail floor space or car parking associated with
retail use will not be supported.
Note that for the purpose of this policy ‘retail’ is
defined as including all ‘customer-facing’
commercial and social enterprises throughout
Histon & Impington and not just on the High
Street

Specifically the High Street is a gem: HINP06 the
High Street
• Intent: to retain the mixed housing and retail
offering in the High Street in terms of the
number and range of businesses and other
amenities which are present
• Key Points:
Bicycle parking and allocated car parking in line
with standards (appendix II)
Utilising opportunities to improve the organisation
of car parking;
Maintaining ease and efficient access for large
delivery vehicles as appropriate;
Maximising opportunities to connect parking
spaces through joint working with individual
property owners
New housing development that replaces rather
than supplements the existing retail
accommodation shall not be supported. 1 or 2
bedroom flats shall be permitted

The Tesco site is an important anchor point.
HINP07 the Tesco site
• Intent: to retain the Tesco site for retail activity
and to enable mixed retail/residential
redevelopment
• Key points:
current retail space and mix must be retained. 1
and 2 bedroom flats are considered appropriate on
this site.
Any redevelopment should also:
Provide generous bicycle parking and sufficient
and better organised car parking on site;
Enable easy access for large delivery vehicles;
Retain the current level of commercial space
Provide appropriate access for the public to the
brook at the rear of the property
Development of housing on the site that reduces
the current commercial space shall not be
supported.

Economic success
To encourage the growth and success of the retail, leisure and other commercial businesses of the villages.
There are two parts to this priority: encouraging High Street commerce and maintaining employment. Second
maintaining employment

The jam factory is a part of our heritage: HINP08
the jam factory
• Intent: to retain the jam factory site primarily as
an employment site because it makes a critical
contribution to the sustainability of the
Community.
• Key Points:
Development proposals will be supported where
they maintain or increase the level of employment
Where applicable opportunities will be sought to:
Improve direct and safe access for pedestrians to
and from the High Street and the Guided Bus stop
and for cyclists to and from the Guideway;
Provide generous covered bicycle parking and
sufficient car parking on site; and
Include ‘greenways’ open to allow members of the
public to walk through from Chivers Way to the
Community Orchard on Manor Field and to the
High Street.
Furthermore
A green separation between the site and Home
Close shall be retained.

Vision Park provides employment + High
Street business: HINP09 Vision Park
• Intent: to retain the Vision Park site
primarily as an employment site because it
makes a critical contribution to the
sustainability of the Community.
• Key points:
Development proposals to improve or increase
business accommodation will be supported
where they maintain or increase the current
level of employment on the site.
Where applicable opportunities will be sought to:
Improve direct and safe access for pedestrians
to and from the High Street and the Guided Bus
stop and for cyclists to and from the Guideway;
Provide generous covered bicycle parking and
sufficient car parking on site

Vibrant community
To ensure the villages’ community infrastructure (clubs and societies, open spaces and events) develops and
adapts to their emerging and changing demographic.

We have opportunities to access more green
space: HINP10 Bypass Farm
• Intent: to designate this land as a Local Green
Space, retain it for recreation use and to permit
limited development to support recreation, and
to confirm its inclusion in the Local Plan.
• Key points:
• Development will be limited to the provision of
formal recreation facilities including a sports hall
• Build space is no more than 2% of the total
(building footprint of 800sq.m)
• Car parking provision is no more than 4% of the
total (approximately 120 spaces)
• There is a similar quantity of covered cycle
provision (120 spaces)
• Safe and direct off-road pedestrian/cyclist access is
provided

Some of our green space is within the community:
HINP11 local green space
• Intent: to define and protect Local Green
Spaces (LGSs) in order to protect and retain
their character, beauty, tranquillity,
biodiversity and recreation values for
community use.
• Key points:
Several LGSs are already defined as Protected
Village Amenity Areas
Manor Park Field is the subject of HINP12
A full list is included in the Policy
No development will be permitted
Car parking is not supported.

And some of it needs a little extra protection:
HINP12 Manor Park Field
• Intent: to retain this site for use as an open
public recreation space by designating it as a
Local Green Space
• Key points:
The land shown, which includes the
Community Orchard (HICOP), is safeguarded as
an informal open space.
Development will only be permitted where this
is necessary to support outdoor enjoyment of
this site.
Car parking is not supported.

Safe, secure and supporting
To support the community in continuing to make the villages safe, secure, supporting and welcoming for all; to
enable everyone to live active and fulfilling lives

Maybe there’s an opportunity for a
health centre: HINP13 the Infants School
• Intent: to retain the site to provide a
community facility (such as a health centre
to which the Firs House surgery can
relocate)
• Key points:
The land shown is allocated for mixed
community (possibly health)and residential use
Any residential provision must be consistent
with the main function of the building
parking for cycles and cars meet standards in
Appendix II
it is accessible for the community mini-bus

Housing for all
To ensure a sufficient supply of sustainable and high quality housing (including affordable homes and small and
larger units which address changing demographic demand) within the villages.

HINP14 affordable housing
• Intent: to ensure that new developments deliver
a mix of affordable and social housing and that
they do so in a manner which does not visibly
differentiate between market housing and
affordable housing.
• Key points
• affordable housing must be integral to the
development and not differentiated in design
quality
• residential proposals which do not meet an
affordable housing 40% will only be supported if
the proposals are justified by an open book
assessment of viability.
• affordable housing on exception sites will be held
in perpetuity and will only be available to
occupiers with a community connection
HINP15 meeting local needs
• Intent: to ensure that the mix of housing on
any new development reflects the needs of
the Community (and does not simply
maximise returns for the developer).
• Key points
• Specific regard should be given to the need for:
• 1 and 2 bedroom starter homes;
• 2 and 3 bedroom homes for younger families;
• Dwellings suitable for older and/or less able residents
and life time occupation; and
• Affordable housing
• Developments which offer self-build
opportunities are encouraged.
We will see new housing and need to be clear
about how we allow it

It’s got to be sustainable: HINP16 sustainable
development
• Intent: to ensure that design, development
and delivery of new estates is sustainable
and contributes as far as is possible to the
broad sustainability of the Community.
• Key points
• Meet Building for Life 12 standard
• Prioritise walking and cycling
• Manage water effectively and mitigate flood risk
• Protect biodiversity
• Utilise opportunities to generate, store and
share energy
• Use public art to add character
• Build roads to adoptable standard

We need to ensure that STATION gets done right:
HINP17 STATION
• Intent: to retain this site for mixed use and
to confirm its inclusion in the Local Plan.
• Key Points
This site is included in South Cambs emerging
Local Plan, Policy E/8: Mixed-Use Development
in Histon & Impington Station Area
http://bit.ly/2wB1Lsk.
The former station building should be retained
and reused as appropriate for commercial or
community use.
A through footpath/cycleway to allow access to
Vision Park should be provided

If there is to be development on the green belt …
HINP18 exception sites
• Intent: We wish to protect green belt land within
the Plan area.
• However if development of the Green Belt was
necessary we wish to ensure our housing
requirements (Social and Affordable) are met and
community open space or facilities are provided
which will benefit the community and are befitting
of the development and/or land size.
• Key Points
• Housing schemes coming forward under Local Plan policy
as Green Belt exception sites will be supported provided
that:
• community open space, or other contribution to the
community in the form of social or other infrastructure is
provided; and
• the necessary enabling infrastructure for its community
contribution, e.g. parking, drainage, pathways etc. is
provided;
• In particular policies HINP14 affordable housing, HINP16
sustainable development and HINP03 size, scale and
location of new housing developments apply

Our policies address multiple priorities: the purple
matrix
HINP# policy theme
essential
character
economic
success
vibrant
community
social
infrastructure
housingforall
getting
around
HINP01 high quality design character
HINP02 interesting buildings character
HINP03 size, style & location character
HINP04 the Windmill character
HINP05 retail outlets economy
HINP06 the High Street economy
HINP07 the Tesco site economy
HINP08 the jam factory economy
HINP09 Vision Park economy
HINP10 Bypass Farm community
HINP11 local green space community
HINP12 Manor Park Field community
HINP13 the Infants School social
HINP14 affordable housing housing
HINP15 meeting local needs housing
HINP16 sustainable development housing
HINP17 STATION housing
HINP18 exception sites housing
policy plays a major role in responding to this priority
policy also responds to this policy or principle
priorities

Maybe you’re disappointed: what’s not in the
plan? quite a lot actually
essentialcharacter
successfuleconmy
community
infrastructure
housing&
demography
safeandsecure
gettingaround
directly addressed by this Neighbourhood Plan
indirectly addressed by this Neighbourhood Plan
addressed outside this Neighbourhood Plan
priorities

There are obvious projects that now
deserve follow through
Projects related to Neighbourhood Plan policies
Projects related to issues not related to
Neighbourhood Plan policies
Policy No Proposal
HINP13 P1
New Community (possible Medical) Centre to serve
residents living in the Plan Area.
HINP10 P2 Creation of new formal sports space.
Cross
cutting
P3 Creation of a more extensive cycle path network.
HINP14 P4 Encourage supply of affordable homes.
No Proposal
P5
Ensure adequate parking provision to support
activities within the village.
P6
New guided busway stop in the north west of the
community.
P7 Provide more meeting places for young people.
P8 Better broadband and mobile phone coverage.
P9 Direct bus services into Cambridge.
P10 Promoting the retail offer in Histon & Impington.
P11
Explore the potential for setting up a community
solar PV or equivalent scheme.
P12 Explore opportunities to extend footpath network

One final point: does the plan fit the community?
• Our guiding principles are the lens through
which we test the Plan.
• Does it enable the Community to be we want it
to be?
• Does it encourage this to happen?
• Does it do what is possible (within a planning
regime) to protect what we value?
• The final version of the Plan will test which
policies enable, encourage and/or protect
each of the principles.
• It will note where compromise has been
necessary in order to deliver an overall best
result
HINP# policy theme
digitalvillage
sustainablecommunity
diverse&inclusive
heritage&design
HINP01 high quality design character
HINP02 interesting buildings character
HINP03 size, style & location character
HINP04 the Windmill character
HINP05 retail outlets economy
HINP06 the High Street economy
HINP07 the Tesco site economy
HINP08 the jam factory economy
HINP09 Vision Park economy
HINP10 Bypass Farm community
HINP11 local green space community
HINP12 Manor Park Field community
HINP13 the Infants School social
HINP14 affordable housing housing
HINP15 meeting local needs housing
HINP16 sustainable development housing
HINP17 STATION housing
HINP18 exception sites housing
principles

Histon & Impington Neighbourhood
Plan
(the Plan)
Version 1.0
January 2018
Thank you!

Histon & Impington neighbourhood plan ver 1.0 jan 18 update 2

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Histon & Impington neighbourhood plan ver 1.0 jan 18 update 2