Land to the south of Hall Walks, Easington Village, County Durham

Introduction

Welcome to the public consultation page for a proposed development to demolish the existing agricultural buildings and erect 38no. dwellings (Class C3) with associated access and landscape works at Land to the south of Hall Walks, Easington Village, County Durham. The proposals will shortly be the subject of a formal Planning Application to Durham County Council but before this, we are providing an opportunity for local residents to view and comment on the proposals.

The Site

The site is located to the west of Easington Village in County Durham and extends to 1.68 hectares (4.15 acres). The site mostly comprises an agricultural field, as well as two agricultural sheds in the north of the site. All of the site boundaries are made up of hedgerows, whilst the western boundary is more of a mature hedgerow which also incorporates large trees.

The site is bound to the north by Hall Walks (B1283), whilst residential properties are situated further north. The site is also bound to the east by residential properties. A cemetery is situated beyond Durham Lane to the south of the site, whilst the A19 is located beyond the mature hedgerow and tree boundary to the west.

Easington Village centre is situated approximately 600 metres east of the site and contains local facilities such as schools, shops, public houses and healthcare facilities. There are four bus stops within a 310m radius of the Site, with buses every 30 minutes travelling to Durham, Sunderland, Peterlee and Seaham. Therefore, the site is considered to be situated within a sustainable location.

Access into the Site is gained from the existing access point on Hall Walks (B1283) to the north.

The Proposal

The proposed development is for the demolition of the existing agricultural buildings and the erection of 38no. dwellings (Class C3) with associated access and landscape works at the site.

The proposed development, to be delivered by Believe Housing, will provide 38 new, mostly affordable home ownership dwellings which will assist the Council in its delivery of 1,308 new dwellings per year. This far surpasses the affordable requirements of a residential development and therefore strongly contributes to local needs for an increase in affordable housing.

Moreover, there is also a previous outline planning approval on part of this site, as such it is considered that the principle of a housing development on the site has already previously been established as acceptable.

The housing units are to be a mix of bungalows, semi-detached and detached houses, totalling 3,426sqm, split as follows:

• 2-bed bungalows, comprising 88sqm each;
• 2-bed semi-detached houses, comprising 80sqm each;
• 3-bed semi-detached houses, comprising 95sqm each;
• 3-bed corner houses, comprising 96sqm each;
• 3-bed detached houses, comprising 104 sqm each; and
• 4-bed detached houses, comprising 111sqm each.

Access to the northern portion of the proposed development will be taken from the existing access point in north of the site, which will have to be upgraded to ensure it is appropriate for the two-way traffic in and out of the site. The southern portion of the proposed development will be accessed via a two-way road taken from Durham Lane to the south of the site. Each housing unit will have at least 1 in curtilage parking bay, with the scheme designed to meet Durham County Council’s parking standards, thus providing ample car parking for residents. 6 visitor parking bays will also be provided in the northern portion of the proposed development, whilst 4 additional visitor parking bays are proposed in the southern portion of the site.

Each plot will have an allocated garden space to the front and rear of the properties, thereby providing sufficient residential amenity space for future residents. To preserve as much of the natural buffer between the site and the A19 to the west, the plots are proposed to be set back 30m from the A19. This will create an area of open space and maintain separation distances to the existing properties on Hall Walks. Greenspace has been proposed in the north-western corner of the site to further enhance this natural buffer and to reduce the effect of noise pollution from the A19. Double-fronted house types are proposed to provide natural surveillance and an attractive development. The existing hedge and trees on the boundaries of the site are set to be retained, whilst additional pockets of green space are proposed along with tree planting.

Please see a link to the Indicative Proposed Site Plan below.