We the undersigned call on South Oxfordshire District Council to refuse planning permission for Land North of Bayswater Brook (LNBB) north of Oxford (OX3). 

SODC cannot ignore the objections to developing LnBB by major statutory consultees, the Environment Agency (EA), Natural England and the Berkshire Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT).

 

Why this petition matters:

 

• The EA has recommended that SODC refuse planning permission for LnBB until THAMES WATER repairs its degraded Oxford sewage treatment works: ‘Adding additional flows to the STW before this scheme is completed is not acceptable.’ (EA to SODC 15 February 2024)
• The EA’s intervention sets an important precedent not just for Oxfordshire but the country: when a central government agency tells a district council not to approve new development that will aggravate local flooding and sewage spills, then the local authority has a duty on grounds of public health and safety to refuse planning permission.
• Development at LnBB would aggravate an already serious situation.

Recently but especially this past winter, flooding has intensified on the boundary of LnBB: to the west on the Elsfield Lane; to the south in Barton where homes have been flooded and to the east on the Bayswater Road. 

 

The Environment Agency’s objections to LnBB

 

• Christ Church (Oxford University) the landowner of LnBB wants to build 1450 homes plus 120 assisted living places for 3560 residents on 125 hectares of high-quality farmland surrounded by the Green Belt. 
• All those houses and people will have to depend on Thames Water’s Oxford sewage system which Thames Water has allowed to deteriorate and may not fully upgrade until after 2030. 
• The EA is explicit that Additional load within the network, without improvements, will lead to more storm overflows, pollution incidents and network failures. ( EA to SODC 15 February 2024)
• In its letter to SODC, the EA also highlights the failure of LnBB’s developers to meet the standards of the EA, the NPPF and SODC’s local plan. 

 

Four counts of non-compliance form the basis of EA objections and its recommendation to refuse planning permission for LnBB:

 1.   The housing and infrastructure is not confined to Flood Zone 1(with the  lowest risk of flooding) as required by NPPF and the SODC local plan. The developers will have to change the layout to keep development out of Flood zone 2 and 3.

2.    The developers have not provided a site-specific flood risk assessment that meets EA requirements so there is no assurance that LnBB will not aggravate local flooding. (non-compliant with NPPF and SODC local plan)

3.    The developers fail to provide a fit for purpose biodiversity gain assessment for proposals to change the course of the Bayswater Brook within the site. (non-compliant with EA, SODC and NPPF)

4.    The EA also points out that the developers are not complying with the SODC local plan because they are pushing for 1560 units rather than the 1100 allocated in the Local Plan. 

 

Objections from other statutory consultees

• BBOWT for years has opposed LNBB because of the damage it will cause to Sydlings Copse & College Pond, the site of special scientific interest which it manages on the LnBB boundary; failing to prevent harm to a SSSI goes against the NPPF and the SODC local plan; 
• Natural England has warned SODC that it will officially object to LNBB if the developers do not provide clear information about mitigating potential harm to Sydlings Copse & College Pond.

 

LnBB in South Oxfordshire’s local plan 2035

Through the ‘Oxford Housing Deal’ SODC was forced to produce a local plan that made a priority of providing houses for Oxford’s ‘unmet housing need.’  Under pressure and in a hurry, in 2018 it selected Land North of Bayswater Brook as one of three strategic allocations on the edge Oxford to help meet Oxford’s housing need. LnBB is the first to submit outline planning permission to SODC but proposals fail to tackle the lack of public transport, of traffic mitigation, of sewage and flood management. 

SODC must refuse planning permission for LnBB because it will increase flooding, sewage spills and other public health or environmental risks. 

It must also consider removing LnBB from the local plan because there is no certainty that Thames Water will complete its upgrade of the Oxford STW during the local plan period which runs to 2035.

Finally, the Environment Agency with support from DEFRA must back up SODC’s decision as the council will almost certainly face the risk of being sued by the developer.

 

WE WILL SEND this petition to Steve Barclay Secretary of State DEFRA, Michael Gove Secretary of State for DLUHC, Philip DUFFY Chief Executive of the ENVIRONMENT AGENCY, all local authorities in Oxfordshire and MPs with oversight for the environment.

 

For background see:

Thousands of Oxford homes face delay over sewage works (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-68661665#:~:text=The%20Environment%20Agency%20(EA)%20has,been%20delayed%20until%20the%202030s

The Thames Water storm discharge map for the Oxford catchment: (https://www.thameswater.co.uk/about-us/performance/river-health/storm-discharge-data