Hi Everyone
It is now 1 week since the petition was started and we have 1,056 signatures. A big thank you and well done to everyone who has signed and shared. Please continue to share. I have put some posters up in the Village where you can scan a QR code to access the petition.
The consultation exercise ran by ELG on behalf of the developers ends on Sunday 21st December.
The comments submitted to the developer are likely to be used to fine tune their eventual application to build 205 houses on the green belt in Whitburn.
The comments submitted to the developer will not be regarded as official objections. We will have to submit our official objections to South Tyneside Council once the developer makes a planning application.
To give you an idea about the position of Whitburn Neighbourhood Forum to this proposed development I have attached our response to ELG.
Its about a 2 minute read.
The Forum will submit a more detailed objection to South Tyneside Council once the planning application is submitted.
Best Regards and Best Wishes for Xmas
Steve Lavelle
Objection to Mill Lane Development: Whitburn Neighbourhood Forum
Whitburn Neighbourhood Forum strongly objects to the proposed development of 205 homes on green field and agricultural land off Mill Lane, surrounding Marsden Primary School. These objections are matters of principle and location that cannot be addressed through design changes, mitigation measures, conditions, or planning obligations.
This proposal is inappropriate development on Green Belt land, outside the settlement boundary of Whitburn. It is not allocated in the emerging South Tyneside Local Plan, which is currently under examination, and approval would undermine the plan-led system.
The permanent loss of Green Belt land in this location is unacceptable and irreversible.
The site is in an inherently unsustainable location. Whitburn has a lack of services, especially health services that are either not present (dentist) or operating beyond capacity (GP). The scale of the proposal would increase Whitburn’s population by almost 10%, placing additional pressure on services and infrastructure that are already constrained.
The site’s distance from services and facilities means that development here will be unavoidably car dependent. 205 houses will significantly increase traffic and air pollution. Congestion, noise and poor air quality are already causing severe issues, especially on Mill Lane and East Street during peak hours due to high volumes of traffic from commuting, schools, and the quarry. These impacts are intrinsic to the site’s location and cannot be mitigated through layout or traffic management measures.
There is no proposal to improve sewage capacity. The use of the term ‘betterment’ relating to surface water management is a prime example of greenwashing. Over 1 million tonnes of untreated sewage is discharged at Whitburn annually in contravention of the UWWTD – this development will add to that total.
The development will cause unacceptable and irreversible harm to the character of Whitburn, due to the loss of a significant proportion of local landscape, open countryside and Green Belt, and the severing of a green link. It will permanently harm the rural and coastal setting that defines Whitburn as a village, which cannot be mitigated or offset.
For these reasons, the proposal is unacceptable in principle. The harm arising from the location of the site, its Green Belt designation, existing infrastructure constraints and the permanent loss of the unique character of Whitburn as a rural and coastal village cannot be outweighed or mitigated. The development should not be taken forward.
Note that this consultation does not constitute early, proactive and effective engagement with the community. There has been no meaningful engagement with residents, no public meetings and no roadshows. This exercise does not meet the expectations set out in national policy for community engagement and should not be relied upon by the local planning authority as evidence that meaningful engagement has taken place.