Tiptree Neighbourhood Plan
(16) 4 Vision and Objectives
Challenges for Tiptree
4.1 Tiptree Neighbourhood Plan seeks to address, as far as possible, the challenges and opportunities that face the community. Over 1000 responses were received through the community consultation and the challenges that were identified are summarised below:
- Village Identity: 84% of respondents to the community questionnaire wish Tiptree to continue to be known as a village. Its size, character and rural setting are valued. Future development must retain that 'feel' and character and not impose a town-scape or mass urbanisation.
- Traffic Flow: Tiptree is sited on a busy crossroads and there is a strong desire to relieve traffic at certain 'pressure points', particularly in Church Road which is the shopping and commercial centre of the village. For this reason the areas favoured by the community for development are to the north and north-west of the village primarily to allow access to the major routes without creating additional traffic in Church Road.
- A12 access: Two routes connect Tiptree to the A12. Both include narrow bridges that cause delays at busy periods, the route via Feering contains a T junction that can be hard to turn out of and the other at Rivenhall has a minimal slip road onto the A12. As the village grows the need for better connections to the A12 is becoming critical. The proposed A12 widening scheme will bring improvements but also fresh challenges, particularly with regard to increasing traffic on the B1023, Kelvedon Road and, potentially, Church Road also.
- Open Space: 66% of respondents to the community questionnaire consider that there is insufficient publicly accessible open space around Tiptree. There is also a strong desire to protect our valuable wildlife areas and 65% of the respondents would like to see some form of country park established in the Tiptree area.
- Village Centre: Comments focus on increasing the variety of shops, providing places to eat and drink in an evening, providing additional parking for cars and cycles, reducing through traffic (especially HGVs) and environmental improvements such as pedestrianised areas, seats and flowerbeds.
- Essential services: There is a regular bus service between Maldon and Colchester that is considered 'adequate' by most, although the service no longer extends into the evening. However most respondents consider the service to Kelvedon and Witham (including the railway stations) to be inadequate and, for those who travel to the stations by car, car parking can be difficult. There is an expressed desire to see improvements in leisure facilities, eating facilities, dental and health centre provision. 1 in 10 respondents have been unable to register with a dentist in Tiptree and 47% have found it difficult to get an urgent appointment at the Health Centre.
Vision for Tiptree
4.2 In consultation with the community, the following vision for Tiptree was established:
(18) Vision for Tiptree in 2033
‘Our vision is to retain an attractive village feel to Tiptree with a close relationship to its heritage and surrounding countryside. We want to strengthen the supportive community at the heart of Tiptree through sympathetic development whilst at the same time developing a thriving rural centre with a sustainable economy and a robust infrastructure to meet the needs of the community.’
Neighbourhood Plan objectives
4.3 In order to deliver the Vision for Tiptree, the Neighbourhood Plan seeks to address the following objectives:
(22) Objectives of the Tiptree Neighbourhood Plan
1: To deliver development prioritising local distinctiveness in keeping with the village feel, rural surroundings and heritage of Tiptree.
2: To meet the housing, infrastructure and service requirements and needs of Tiptree and its residents in a sustainable manner.
3: To improve movement through Tiptree, for vehicular traffic but also for walking and cycling and to improve access to the countryside, main routes and railway stations whilst minimising impact on the village centre.
4: To protect and enable Tiptree's green environment, wildlife and biodiversity to thrive and grow. To protect local, national and international designated sites and habitats, and integrate green corridors into new developments.
5: To enable Tiptree village centre to thrive as a safe location for people to spend leisure time and access community facilities.
6: To ensure that Tiptree is an attractive location for a range of businesses so that its local economy can thrive.
4.4 In the sections that follow, the policies to support and deliver the vision and objectives are set out under the following topics:
- Spatial Strategy
- Design and Housing
- Traffic and Movement
- Tiptree Village Centre
- Employment
- Community Infrastructure
- Countryside, Green Spaces and Green Infrastructure
- Site Allocations
- Non-Policy Actions
4.5 In each section the relevant objectives addressed by the topic are set out. These are followed by explanatory text that sets out the context and justification for the policies that follow. The policies themselves are contained within blue boxes. These policies are the primary policy instrument within the Neighbourhood Plan. They promote sustainable development within the Neighbourhood Plan designated area. They are to be considered prioritised and in line with the intentions of higher planning policy as well as the local community.
4.6 The Policies Map is to be found at the back of this document on page 61.
Church Road, Tiptree