Category: Uncategorized

Posted on

Our response to proposals for 4 new homes at Ware Park

We have submitted a formal response to proposals for 4 houses on Green Belt land near to Ware Park Manor.

Ware Park

Our objections to the proposals are based on the Neighbourhood Plan, specifically:

  1. We object to this proposed development on the basis that it does not meet the requirements of Bengeo Neighbourhood Area Plan Policy HBN2: Important Views.
  2. Paragraph 4.16 of the Neighbourhood Plan states: – “Protecting special views from inappropriate development, particularly in the rural areas at the
    northern end of the Ward, will help preserve its character and aesthetic appeal.”
  3. Neighbourhood Plan Policy HBN2 identifies eight views as ‘Important Views’, one of which is View 4: Watermill Lane North towards Ware Park Manor. Policy HBN2 states: – “If a Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment and/or a Landscape Sensitivity and Capacity Assessment, as required by Policy DES2 of the East Herts District Plan, reveals a harmful impact on those views as a result of the proposal, the development will only be permitted where
    appropriate mitigation measures can be delivered”.
  4. The Planning Statement issued on behalf of the developers seeks to imply that the Neighbourhood Plan and local planning policy is “out of date’. The Neighbourhood Plan policy remains in full force and is in no way ‘out of date’. It is misleading to the planning committee to seek to imply this.
  5. Paragraph 4.33 of the Planning Statement asserts that the proposed development “does not interrupt View 4 and will not have a harmful impact on View 4”. View 4, as depicted in the Neighbourhood Plan, and the opinions of neighbouring residents who have submitted objections to this application, show that this open field contributes substantially to the character of both the local area for adjacent residents, and the surrounding area of Bengeo. The proposed development would clearly, and very substantially, harm Neighbourhood Plan View 4 for the general public as well as for the immediate residents.
  6. We also consider that a development on this site would have a detrimental impact on the openness of the Green Belt.

After appropriate review by the committee, it is concluded that this proposed development is not consistent with the Bengeo Neighbourhood Area Plan.

Site location

Site Photos

Ware Park

Posted on

Official Opening of Bengeo Community Garden

Last weekend local residents celebrated the official opening of the Bengeo Community Garden on the corner of Duncombe Road and Tower Street in Bengeo, Hertford. The area was formerly the place of the Water Tower, which has become overgrown. A small group of local residents and Councillors worked together with East Herts District Council, Hertford Town Council, Mudlarks, and local residents on clearing the area and turning it into a community garden.

Rachel Carter, Mayor of Hertford, congratulated everyone involved for all their efforts and persistence in making the garden happen – this is the first completed community project which originated in residents’ discussions about the Bengeo Neighbourhood Plan.

Newly elected MP Josh Dean also said: “I am delighted to be here and join you in celebrating this excellent community project. A huge well done to everyone who was involved. This is my first official public engagement as MP. I very much look forward to engaging with residents and community groups.”

The organisers also met with the wonderful Mudlarks, the local charity supporting adults with learning difficulties, who transformed the garden. We were delighted to thank Vic Hobson and the Mudlarks Community Garden team in person and donate £400. Thank you for all those who have donated and supported the project so far.

Veronica Fraser, representing the Bengeo Community Garden group said: “Our thanks go to Mudlarks, East Herts Council, Bengeo Neighbourhood Plan and many volunteers for making this happen.  We hope even more people will join us in helping the garden to thrive.”

There are plans to continue with some small improvements of the garden, including having an information board about the history of this area.

Posted on

Referendum flyer

We are now distributing our referendum flyer to homes across the Bengeo ward ahead of the vote on Thursday 6th May. If you’ve not yet received the flyer you can click on the link below.

Posted on

Further Tree Heritage Nursery plans

Photo of tree nursery
Tree Heritage nursery in North Road

A further planning application has been submitted for the Tree Heritage Nursery site south of Waterford.

This is the third application in less than 12 months.

The first application in April last year was for 3 three-bed bungalows at the front of the site 3 four-bed traditional boarded barn style dwellinghouses set behind. The properties would have featured designated off-street car-parking. This application was refused and is now the subject of an appeal to The Planning Inspectorate.

The second application was submitted in October and was for 2 three-bed bungalows at the front of the site and 3 three-bed bungalows behind, similarly all with off-street parking.  The application was granted planning permission in December.

The new application retains the 2 three-bed bungalows at the front of the site, whilst the three properties behind have been redesigned to include 4-bed properties with first floor accommodation within the roof, with a chalet dwelling design.

We have submitted a response to the new plans, highlighting the significant and unwelcome impact on the openness of the Green Belt, particularly when viewed from Waterford Marsh.

Read our full response here

Posted on

Response to Hertford Theatre proposals

We have issued a response to ambitious plans to redevelop Hertford Theatre.

Although the majority of the Hertford Theatre site falls within Hertford Castle Ward, a section of the  west elevation is within Hertford Bengeo Ward and thus within the Bengeo Neighbourhood Area  Plan boundary.

Overall, we welcome the proposals – our only comments being on the affordability of community facilities and provision of cycle parking. We also recommend improvement of the playground facilities in the Castle Grounds.

Read our full response here

Posted on

Working Groups Workshop Report

On Tuesday 12th September a workshop for volunteers of the BNAP working groups took place at Hertford Theatre.  The five working groups focused on the areas of

  • Home and Development
  • Culture and Community
  • Natural Environment and Green Spaces
  • Transport and Traffic
  • Business

The workshop was led by Hertford Town Council Planning consultant, Jacqueline Veater, who will be guiding BNAP through the drafting of the neighbourhood plan.

Now that the area of the Bengeo Ward has been officially designated, the next stage will be to prepare a draft for the plan.  Over the course of the workshop, Jacqueline outlined the different stages of the development of the neighbourhood plan and the vital role of the working groups in the process.

As a starting point, the groups were asked to identify a future vision for the Bengeo Ward; volunteers discussed what they most value about living or working in Bengeo ward and areas that could be improved.  

Some of the key topics which were discussed include:

  • Access to green spaces
  • Maintaining the sense of a village community whilst also having a strong central area for people to meet
  • Quality of schools
  • Support for Local businesses to encourage business enterprise
  • Green travel/ initiatives

The working groups broke off into their topic areas to discuss key issues which will then be formed into practical objectives which will help BNAP to formulate an action plan and gather evidence to support the policies.  As a guide, volunteers are encouraged to come up with objectives that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable and Realistic and Time bound (SMART).  

The objective outcomes and discussions from the working group meetings will help us to write questions for a detailed survey that will ask Bengeo Ward residents about all the issues that matter to them.  The questionnaire will be one of the most effective ways for us to gather views from a large percentage of residents/businesses in the area.   The responses that we receive will help us to write policies that will shape the future of the Ward.

The next step in the process will be individual meetings for each of the working groups within the next few weeks.  These meetings will allow the working groups to focus on their specific areas and continue identifying key objectives which will be presented at the next steering committee meeting on 5th October .

This initiative is an exciting opportunity to improve our local area and we welcome your feedback and involvement.  If you would like to join one of the working groups or volunteer in any other way please get in touch.

Posted on

Workshops for Working Group Volunteers

Local residents are invited to a practical workshop for members of BNAP Working Groups and Steering Group at 7:30pm on Tuesday 12th September 2017 at Hertford Theatre. Places are limited so please confirm your attendance.

The workshop will be led by Hertford Town Council’s Planning Consultant and it will focus on:

  • Turning the issues that have been raised so far into draft objectives and a vision
  • Formulating questions to be included in the Neighbourhood Plan survey
  • Collecting evidence to support the planning policies
  • Practical hints and tips on good practice for neighbourhood planning.

We look forward to seeing you then.

Posted on

Steering Group Agrees Next Steps

The Neighbourhood Plan Community Steering Group met last Wednesday evening,  9th August. The attendees included 5 local councillors, representatives of local Resident Associations, residents and a representative of the business community in the ward.

The meeting provided an important opportunity to discuss a number of areas arising from the previous meetings and feedback received to date and crucially agree the next steps and priorities for BNAP. The key topics covered included:

  • Finalising the steering group’s governance and structure
  • Initial analysis of the Neighbourhood Plan feedback received to date
  • Establishing a Communications Group to concentrate on, among other things, maximising the outreach to all stakeholders in the Hertford Bengeo ward
  • Initiating a set of volunteer Working Groups to start looking at topics that have been identified in feedback and consultation to date.
  • Identifying key milestones to enable smooth progress with preparing BNAP.

The key priorities now are to consolidate the formal structure of the group and to start the “real” work of getting the Working Groups into full swing so that consultation feedback can be transformed into draft policies for the plan.

Based on the feedback received so far the initial Working Groups are:

  • Homes and development
  • Natural environment and green spaces
  • Culture and community
  • Transport and traffic
  • Business

We are now calling for all volunteers interested to be involved in the discussions, consultation and presenting proposals for each of the Working Group. If you have not done so already please get in touch with us and let us know your interest – https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/K9JXTG3 or info@lovebengeo.org.uk

There will be initial discussions within each Working Group in August/September. A training session for Working Group volunteers is planned on Tuesday 12th September evening.  More detail to follow.

Proudly powered by WordPress