Full text:
Dear Strategic Planning Team,
[Redacted] I am concerned that proposed development would erode the suspected Green Belt at Priory Park, and I would like the plan to prioritise Brown Belt land as an alternative. I am aware that previous applications in this area have been declined on Green Belt grounds, and I urge careful consideration of drainage, road networks, utilities, and the capacity of existing services before any new development proceeds. I fear issues of persistent gas leaks and inadequate drainage would be worsened by additional housing. I also have concerns about peat erosion and the environmental harm such development could cause, alongside the capacity of local health services to cope with extra demand. Please focus time and investment on improving these existing conditions before proposing any new development. I question the need for additional private care home facilities when already established facilities locally remain under-utilised. Listen to local knowledge and concern, and be consistent with previous residential planning decisions that declined on Green Belt grounds.
Green Belt and countryside
The Green Belt boundary around this part of Macclesfield follows Priory Lane/Prestbury Road (Priory Park site), Whirley Road and Birtles Road. The fields beyond it help contain the town and stop development spreading into the countryside. The government’s grey-belt guidance says that open land can still contribute to preventing sprawl where development would create an extended “finger” into the Green Belt, a real concern with several sites around Priory Lane, Birtles Road, Whirley Road and Sandy Lane. The council should follow a clear order when identifying land: prioritise brownfield and underused urban land, test higher urban densities and existing safeguarded land, and only then consider Green Belt release. If Green Belt land is needed, national policy says previously developed land should come first, followed by grey belt and then other Green Belt land. Previous council assessments found that Green Belt parcels in this area make a significant contribution to preventing the unrestricted sprawl of Macclesfield. If the council now reaches a different view, it should explain what has changed.
Landscape, nature and drainage
Development around Greenside could create ribbon or finger-like development beyond the current edge of Macclesfield. The council should assess the effect on the wider landscape, views, field patterns and the rural setting of places such as Roewood Farm. The area contains ponds, mature hedgerows, trees and wildlife links, with the former-quarry Local Wildlife Site nearby. These features should be surveyed properly and considered together, rather than dealt with separately after a site has been chosen. Local concerns about heavy clay, standing water and surface-water flooding should be investigated through proper seasonal drainage work. Electricity pylons, easements and other constraints should be identified before estimating how many homes a site could realistically provide.
Infrastructure
Housing should only be planned where schools, doctors, drainage, public transport, utilities and roads can cope. The council should say what extra infrastructure each growth option would need, what it would cost, who would pay for it and when it would be delivered. It should also consider whether road improvements would require the removal of hedgerows, trees and verges or would change the rural character of the area.
Roads and access
Priory Lane, Birtles Road, Whirley Road and Sandy Lane are narrow country roads with constrained sections, limited passing space and no continuous pavements. They are used by walkers, cyclists, horse riders, agricultural vehicles and cars. The Weaver Green development is particularly relevant; Cheshire East required its vehicle access to be from Chelford Road and specifically prohibited access onto Whirley Road “in the interests of highway safety” under planning permission 17/4277M. That decision does not automatically rule out every future development, but it shows safety problems on Whirley Road. If it now believes these roads can support more large housing sites, it should provide clear evidence explaining why. The council also needs to assess all proposed sites around Greenside together, as evaluating sites individually could underestimate the combined traffic on Priory Lane, Prestbury Road, Whirley Road, Birtles Road, Sandy Lane, Chelford Road and Broken Cross. Safe access, pavements, cycle routes and any necessary road widening should be demonstrated as genuinely possible before land is allocated, rather than left to be resolved later.
Please ensure these considerations form the scope of the Local Plan and that the consultation process clearly communicates how responses will influence the plan. I would appreciate confirmation of how local input has shaped the approach.
Yours faithfully,
Dr and Mrs P McGuigan
