Developing a vision for Colchester

1. Colchester City is an appealing location The Colchester City Local Authority Area has an attractive environment. It benefits from a diverse spectrum of settlement types including the city itself including its wealth of history, villages that vary in their size and sustainability, the coastal areas and the countryside. This creates a very appealing location for people to live and there is also a clear harmonious link between the old and the new. Colchester City Council should seek to develop in and around the settlements that are most sustainable and where environmental constraints are reduced, with the most sensitive areas protected from development. This can include appropriate development in both urban and rural communities and it is important that the vision reflects this as an ambition for the area over the plan period. 2. Colchester City is an accessible location As a Local Authority Area, Colchester City is accessible and is well-connected with good transport links. The main urban area of the City itself is surrounded by settlements, such as West Bergholt (identified in the Adopted Local Plan as a Sustainable Settlement), that benefit from good transport links and have accessibility to a variety of services and facilities. By integrating the accessibility of communities within the Vision for the Local Plan, everybody will have the opportunity to support changes in travel behaviours and patterns over the plan period which will bring significant benefits to communities, residents, businesses and the environment of Colchester. 3. Acceptance for further growth Colchester City benefits from a general acceptance that further growth is required in the right locations to ensure a healthy, prosperous, social and economic future for the City and surrounding areas. By being ambitions and open to further continued growth the area can continue to flourish and meet the needs of existing communities and also that of future communities that will be developed over the plan period.

The Colchester City Local Authority Area presents some exciting opportunities for new sustainable growth looking ahead to 2041, that will positively enhance the area. It is important that future growth and development is climate resilient with modern eco-friendly methods and technologies being used and integrated throughout all developments in the plan area. Colchester’s new Local Plan should strive for developments that support the climate agenda whilst supporting future needs of communities. Land North of Colchester Road, West Bergholt (Site ID 10229) is an example of the type of sustainable development CCC should be accepting and actively encouraging. The site is located immediately adjacent the built-up area of West Bergholt and provides a logical infill development to the north-west edge of the village. The site provides a natural extension to the Hopkins Homes site currently being built. The site comprises 3.8ha and could accommodate 80-90 homes. Access would be provided via William Sims Close which has been designed to provide access to the site. There are no constraints to the development and is available for development immediately. As a housebuilder, Hopkins Homes Ltd provide the timeless homes and thriving communities that Colchester should be actively encouraging, that protect and respect the environment for this generation and the next. In accordance with the National Planning Policy Framework (2023) Hopkins Homes are passionate about the creation of high quality, beautiful and sustainable properties and places that people will love and that stand the test of time.

1) A sought after location that provides a welcoming environment with significant development opportunities which creates communities of exceptional quality that those living and working in Colchester are proud of. 2) Colchester will be an area with many successful examples of delivering sustainable developments in the right locations to meet needs that will have been identified through an up-to-date Local Plan, facilitated by positive decision making by CCC. 3) For CCC to be recognised as an authority that is proactive and forward thinking to enable development opportunities to be pursued and encouraged in sustainable locations, to support existing and future communities with the right type of housing and developments in the right locations.