West Hanningfield VDS Guidance
The following table has been provided so that residents can easily use the Guidance within the VDS to support correspondence with the Planning Authorities including via the CBC Public Access Website. Just copy and paste relevant items of Guidance into your online comments or into your letter.
| GUIDANCE |
| General Guidance |
| No 1 Page 9: Avoid intrusive development in both Natural and Historical Character Areas |
| No: 2 Page: 9: Avoid removal of trees and hedges where possible |
| No: 3 Page: 9: Buildings should generally be set back from the road |
| No: 4 Page: 9: Maintain reasonable spaces between properties |
| No: 5 Page: 9: Keep rooflines low enough to ensure that the tallest items in the landscape are trees |
| No: 6 Page: 9: Preserve footpaths and other rights of way |
| No: 7 Page: 9: Maintain pattern of houses fronting the road. Avoid buildings to the rear that go against the established pattern and distribution of houses |
| Settlement Pattern |
| No: 8 Page: 11: Maintain the existing pattern of multiple small building groups |
| No: 9 Page: 11: Maintain the green spaces between communities |
| No: 10 Page: 11: Maintain the existing linear pattern in the siting of any building growth. |
| No: 11 Page: 11: To accommodate growth, spread new development around the Parish through in-fill and community extension rather than large one-off expansions |
| No: 12 Page: 11: Incorporate green areas into new developments to maintain an open look and feel |
| No: 13 Page: 11: Protect natural and man-made green areas as community assets by enhancing them with seating, wildlife habitats and landscaping |
| Landscape Setting 1 |
| No: 14 Page: 14: Development on arable land should be avoided |
| No: 15 Page: 14: Destruction of ponds, copses, trees, greens and other landscape features should be avoided |
| No: 16 Page: 14: When new development is planned, brownfield sites should be considered first |
| No: 17 Page: 14: Archaeological surveys should be considered prior to development of any sites |
| No: 18 Page: 14: Where new hedges or trees are planted these should preferably be sustainable native species |
| No: 19 Page: 14: Ensure existing access is maintained to all natural amenity areas |
| No: 20 Page: 14: Consider provision of new amenity areas, and greater access to existing amenity areas, as part of any new developments |
| No: 21 Page: 14: Any further encroachment onto existing woodland, especially ancient woodland, should be avoided |
| Landscape Setting 1 |
| No: 22 Page: 15: LDF Guidance on development in the Green Belt should be strictly adhered to |
| No: 23 Page: 15: Any development should blend in seamlessly with existing buildings on plot and with nearby dwellings |
| No: 24 Page: 15: Traditional materials and colours should be used for new buildings and refurbishments |
| No: 25 Page: 15: Door and window styles should complement those of nearby properties |
| No: 26 Page: 15: Properties should be of a similar size and scale to those nearby |
| No: 27 Page: 15: Landscaping and boundaries should be kept consistent with rural location |
| No: 28 Page: 15: Flat roofs should be avoided |
| No: 29 Page: 15: Outbuildings should be preserved or sympathetically converted to retain character |
| Residential Buildings 1 |
| No: 30 Page: 16: Builders, developers and planners should complement the existing style of surrounding properties by the use of similar materials, colours and finishes. |
| No: 31 Page: 16: Developments should be sensitive to the immediate surroundings and should not dominate them |
| No: 32 Page: 16: Roof heights should not clash with those nearby |
| No: 33 Page: 16: Preserve views by staggering heights of new buildings |
| No: 34 Page: 16: New builds and major alterations should be used as opportunities to incorporate forward-thinking designs, materials from renewable sources and sustainable build practice |
| Residential Buildings 2 |
| No: 35 Page: 17: Character should be maintained through the use of similar styles of coverings, colours and detail to surrounding properties |
| No: 36 Page: 17: Flat roofs should be used as a last resort and only in un-overlooked locations |
| No: 37 Page: 17: Extensions should be consistent in scale to the parent building and should not cause the combined building to overfill the plot |
| No: 38 Page: 17: Extension rearwards is preferable to forwards or sideways including addition of dormer windows |
| No: 39 Page: 17: Attic or roof conversions should be sympathetic to the size, scale and design of the parent property |
| Residential Buildings 3 |
| No: 40 Page: 18: Respect the size of plot and relationship to neighbouring properties - large properties on small plots are not common in the Parish |
| No: 41 Page: 18: Ensure buildings do not fill the width of their plot to allow for gaps between buildings on adjacent plots |
| No: 42 Page: 18: Closely match the building line of homes in the near vicinity when developing any new buildings including garages and outhouses |
| No: 43 Page: 18: Where possible protect existing boundary trees and hedges and landscape with native species |
| No: 44 Page: 18: If walls, fences and gates must be used, ensure they are of a rural style |
| Residential Buildings 4 |
| No: 45 Page: 19: During renovation and extension building, windows, doors and other fittings should closely match those of the parent building |
| No: 46 Page: 19: Windows and doors which are appropriately designed for the age and style of the property are encouraged |
| No: 47 Page: 19: Developers should avoid mixing historical styles in the same building |
| No: 48 Page: 19: Careful attention should be paid to the colours used on the outside of buildings to maintain character |
| No: 49 Page: 19: Security floodlighting should be sensibly placed and movement sensitive, not constant |
| No: 50 Page: 19: Conservatories and porches should adhere to the same guidance as for extensions |
| No: 51 Page: 19: Conservatories on the rear of homes are both more attractive and more practical |
| Residential Buildings 5 |
| No: 52 Page: 20: Adequate off-street parking should be provided for individual buildings |
| No: 53 Page: 20: Blocks of garages for multiple properties should be avoided since these are often hard to maintain. If used they should placed behind properties and screened |
| No: 54 Page: 20: Driveway design and surfacing should maintain rural feel e.g. bound gravel |
| No: 55 Page: 20: Where developments require them, car parks should be screened to be hidden from the road |
| No: 56 Page: 20: New builds and major alterations should be used as opportunities to incorporate sustainability features such as energy and water conservation and recycling |
| Commerce and Industry 1 |
| No: 57 Page: 21: Agricultural land should be preserved for agricultural use |
| No: 58 Page: 21: Farm buildings should be preserved for agricultural or similar use |
| No: 59 Page: 21: Commercial needs should be considered when larger developments are planned, particularly of family housing |
| No: 60 Page: 21: Industrial development should be restricted to the existing industrial areas along Stock Road |
| No: 61 Page: 21: The siting and design of all new developments, or improvements to existing industrial buildings, should be sensitive to the environment and appropriate to the ambience of their location |
| No: 62 Page: 21: Clear boundaries must be defined around industrial developments to discourage creeping encroachment outside those areas |
| Commerce and Industry 2 |
| No: 63 Page: 22: Screening and landscaping of industrial units with sustainable native trees and hedging species should be encouraged |
| No: 64 Page: 22: Industrial units should not be taller than two stories or taller than the surrounding tree line |
| No: 65 Page: 22: Where Commercial Signage is required it should be tidy and within the site |
| No: 66 Page: 22: Light and noise pollution should be minimised both through building design and site screening |
| No: 67 Page: 22: Where possible, radio equipment should be sited on existing masts and pylons and / or disguised |
| Transport and Communication |
| No: 68 Page: 23: The rural style of village lanes should be protected |
| No: 69 Page: 23: Informal verges should be maintained and urbanising features e.g. fences, walls and bollards, discouraged |
| No: 70 Page: 23: Village approaches should have appropriate rural signage e.g. rustic "gates" either side of the road |
| No: 71 Page: 23: Passing places should be kept informal on narrow lanes |
| No: 72 Page: 23: Where kerbs and pavements are necessary for safety reasons, they should be carefully designed to ensure rural ambience is protected |
| No: 73 Page: 23: Street lighting should be sensitively placed and the minimum necessary for safety purposes |
| No: 74 Page: 23: When new signs are introduced, existing signposts telegraph and electricity poles should be used where possible |