Colchester City Council Preferred Options Local Plan Regulation 18 Consultation 2025
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Colchester City Council Preferred Options Local Plan Regulation 18 Consultation 2025
Policy ST5: Colchester's Housing Need
Representation ID: 12917
Received: 12/01/2026
Respondent: The Johnson Dennehy Planning Partnership
West Mersea has previously had a sustainable and realistic target of 350 new dwellings, of these 120 dwellings have been approved and substantially completed at Brierley Paddocks and a further 100 dwellings have been given approval and construction is underway at Daws Lane. This leaves a sustainable capacity of 130 new dwellings and not the 300 dwellings proposed in Policy PP23.
Policy PP23 should be revoked in favour of smaller deliverable sites with existing infrastructure and the figure of 300 dwellings amended to 130 dwellings to bring the Plan in line with the sustainable capacity of 350 dwellings in total.
Whilst we remain mindful of the Council's desire to have a Plan in place we recognise the contribution towards sustainable development objectives that having a Plan in place would make, not least by increasing the supply of housing and employment opportunities which are important Government objectives. However, the growth must be planned and delivered sustainably. An esential part of that consideration involves ensuring that the necessary infrastructure will be in place to support that growth.
A considerable proportion of the Plan's allocated sites, including Marks Tey, North Colchester and Langham, do not have a realistic or reasonable chance of being delivered during the plan period which consequently also puts into question the overall spatial strategy of the Plan.
Colchester's Housing Need is identified in Policy ST5 and states the Council will plan, monitor, and manage the delivery of at least 20,800 new homes in Colchester City between 2025 and 2041. The annual housing requirement for Colchester is 1,300, as identified by the Standard Methodology.
The Council's aim will be to maintain a sufficient supply of deliverable and developable sites to provide for at least five years' worth of housing on a rolling basis, plus an appropriate buffer in accordance with national policy. The overall distribution of new housing across Colchester is guided by Spatial Strategy (Policy ST3).
West Mersea is a coastal town located on the confluence of the Colne and Blackwater Estuaries, approximately 15km from Colchester city centre. In terms of settlement hierarchy West Mersea falls within the category of 'large settlement'. Colchester's large settlements have the most facilities, services, travel choices and opportunities. These settlements also have some of the largest populations of Colchester. However, in the case of West Mersea, this settlement has environmental constraints and accordingly the level of growth must be balanced and appropriate with these constraints.
Object
Colchester City Council Preferred Options Local Plan Regulation 18 Consultation 2025
Policy ST5: Colchester's Housing Need
Representation ID: 12948
Received: 12/01/2026
Respondent: The Johnson Dennehy Planning Partnership
Built in the right place, new housing developments can make a positive contribution to nature and to the health and wellbeing of people who live there. New housing should be in areas that are already well served by infrastructure and should avoid harm to existing environmental assets of an area. Housing should be targeted at places where it can have a positive environment impact to help achieve landscape restoration and revovery.
New housing developments and houses themselves should be designed to integrate space for both wildlife and people as well as to reduce carbon emissions and minimise water usage.
Policy PP23: Land East Dawes Lane, West Mersea currently proposes approximately 300 new dwellings on good quality agricultural land lying in open countryside outside of existing settlement boundaries to the east of Dawes Lane, West Mersea. West Mersea Town Council has made it clear it is not opposed to 'limited' development for local people, including affordable starter homes, but believes the additional housing on the scale proposed is unsustainable.
Development of 102 East Road offers an opportunity to provide a mix of 52 one, two and three-bedroom properties, with 35% designated as affordable housing in partnership with a registered social landlord, delivering much-needed , high quality and affordable homes for 'local people'.
Object
Colchester City Council Preferred Options Local Plan Regulation 18 Consultation 2025
Policy PP23: Land East Dawes Lane, West Mersea
Representation ID: 13016
Received: 12/01/2026
Respondent: The Johnson Dennehy Planning Partnership
West Mersea has previously had a sustainable and realistic target of 350 new dwellings, of these 120 dwellings have been approved and substantially completed at Brierley Paddocks and a further 100 dwellings have been given approval and construction is underway at Daws Lane. This leaves a sustainable capacity of 130 new dwellings and not the 300 dwellings proposed in Policy PP23.
Policy PP23 should be revoked in favour of smaller deliverable sites with existing infrastructure and the figure of 300 dwellings amended to 130 dwellings to bring the Plan in line with the sustainable capacity of 350 dwellings in total.
Whilst we remain mindful of the Council's desire to have a Plan in place we recognise the contribution towards sustainable development objectives that having a Plan in place would make, not least by increasing the supply of housing and employment opportunities which are important Government objectives. However, the growth must be planned and delivered sustainably. An esential part of that consideration involves ensuring that the necessary infrastructure will be in place to support that growth.
A considerable proportion of the Plan's allocated sites, including Marks Tey, North Colchester and Langham, do not have a realistic or reasonable chance of being delivered during the plan period which consequently also puts into question the overall spatial strategy of the Plan.
Colchester's Housing Need is identified in Policy ST5 and states the Council will plan, monitor, and manage the delivery of at least 20,800 new homes in Colchester City between 2025 and 2041. The annual housing requirement for Colchester is 1,300, as identified by the Standard Methodology.
The Council's aim will be to maintain a sufficient supply of deliverable and developable sites to provide for at least five years' worth of housing on a rolling basis, plus an appropriate buffer in accordance with national policy. The overall distribution of new housing across Colchester is guided by Spatial Strategy (Policy ST3).
West Mersea is a coastal town located on the confluence of the Colne and Blackwater Estuaries, approximately 15km from Colchester city centre. In terms of settlement hierarchy West Mersea falls within the category of 'large settlement'. Colchester's large settlements have the most facilities, services, travel choices and opportunities. These settlements also have some of the largest populations of Colchester. However, in the case of West Mersea, this settlement has environmental constraints and accordingly the level of growth must be balanced and appropriate with these constraints.
