On 14 March 2022, due to concerns over ‘significant recreational pressure’ caused by nearby residents, Natural England imposed a 500m ‘exclusion zone’ and a 12.6km ‘zone of influence’ around the Chiltern Beechwoods Special Area of Conservation (SAC).
The immediate effect of the announcement was a freeze on the determination of all applications for new residential development in the affected areas until a strategic solution is found. The affected local authorities are Dacorum, St Albans, Central Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Luton and Three Rivers, who are now working together to resolve the situation.
Natural England has advised that mitigation should be provided in the form of ‘Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace’ and ‘Strategic Access Management and Monitoring’ (a financial contribution), with the latter of the two preferred.
Dacorum Council, the Local Planning Authority most affected, originally advised a period of 6 months would be needed to provide a way forward. While we understand work is underway, some 3 months on, no fixed date has been announced.
The current restrictions affect a large part of the region north of London which is responsible for delivering a substantial number of much needed new dwellings. However, for the time being, developers and landowners are left waiting.
Whatever the way forward, the reality is that any avoidance and mitigation strategy will inevitably result in additional financial burdens on developers, potentially affecting the viability of proposals.
Bell Cornwell has a number of existing clients who are directly affected by this issue and we are monitoring the situation closely. We hope to provide a more positive update in the coming weeks and months.
