GNLP 2045 Regulation 20 Scoping Consultation

It is recognised that the majority of growth should be directed towards Norwich and the larger settlements, where the concentration of services, employment and infrastructure provides the greatest opportunities for sustainable development. However, the scale of the identified need means that a balanced approach will also be required, drawing upon the capacity of sustainable rural settlements.

In particular, the GNLP should recognise the opportunity presented by rural settlements which are served by railways stations and have a good range of existing services and facilities. The NPPF 2026 places increased emphasis on sustainable patterns of development, including development in locations well connected to stations, and specifically requires local plans to identify suites which support rural communities and enable villages to grow and thrive.

Cantley represents an example of such a location. The settlement benefits from a railway station with connections Norwich, Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth, and the adopted GNLP recognising its existing village hall and public transport provision.
Site 25939: Land South of Limpenhoe Road and East of Station Road, Cantley, is physically well related to the existing settlement and is located within walking distance of Cantley Railway Station. The site has the potential to provide approximately 300no. new homes alongside new green infrastructure, public open space, walking and cycling connections, biodiversity enhancements and sustainable drainage. Additionally, the site is not subject to the types of strategic constraints which would preclude its consideration for growth. The emerging framework demonstrates that the identified landscape, heritage, ecological and railway considerations can be incorporated into the development through appropriate buffers, open space, planting and sensitive design.

The emerging GNLP should therefore adopt a balanced and flexible growth strategy which recognises the role of sustainable rural settlements alongside the larger urban areas, with particular consideration given to settlements that benefit from strong public transport connectivity.

The GNLP 2045 should ensure that infrastructure requirements are intended at an early stage and that the delivery of new development is appropriately coordinated with the provision of necessary infrastructure.

The location of growth should be a key component of the GNLP’s approach to sustainable travel and reducing transport emissions. Greater weight should be given to sites which provide realistic opportunities for walking, cycling and public transport, rather than assessing sustainability solely by reference to the availability of services within the settlement.

The presence of a railways station should be an important consideration in identifying suitable locations for growth. The NPPF 2026 now provides greater policy support for suitable development around well-connected railway stations, recognising their role in supporting sustainable patterns of development. At Site 25939: Land South of Limpenhoe Road and East of Station Road, Cantley, development provides an opportunity to make use of existing rail infrastructure whilst delivering supporting infrastructure, including cycle connections, green infrastructure, sustainable drainage and foul drainage infrastructure.

The emerging GNLP should support the delivery of multifunctional green infrastructure that can provide benefits for recreation, biodiversity, landscape, drainage and climate resilience. At Site 25939: Land South of Limpenhoe Road and East of Station Road, Cantley, the proposals provide an opportunity to deliver a connected network of green infrastructure, including public open space, native planting, ecological enhancements and sustainable drainage features, benefiting both new residents and the wider community.

The GNLP should therefore support sites capable of delivering multifunctional green infrastructure which benefits both new and existing communities.

The GNLP should adopt a positive approach to high-quality design which enables development to respond to the specific character and opportunities of individual sites and settlements. Development at rural settlements should not be excluded solely because of its rural location, where it can be appropriately designed and integrated with the existing settlement.

At Site 25939: Land South of Limpenhoe Road and East of Station Road, Cantley, the emerging design proposals have been informed by the site’s landscape character, existing vegetation, surrounding built form and relationship with the wider settlement. Emerging proposals at Site 25939 recognise the need to response sensitively to the Grade II* Listed Church of St Margaret, including through the positioning of built development, landscape, screening and the potential provision of pedestrian connections.

The GNLP should support this type of approach, whereby development is shaped by local landscape, heritage, ecological and townscape characteristics while still allowing sustainable settlements to grow.

The SWOT analysis should continue to recognise the significant opportunity presented by the increased housing requirement to direct additional growth towards locations which are well related to the existing Norwich urban area and can be integrated with established communities.

In this regard, Costessey represents an established suburban settlement on the western side of the Norwich urban area, with a strong relationship to the wider urban area and access to a range of existing services, facilities, employment and transport connections. The potential to accommodate further growth through appropriately planned extensions to established settlements should therefore be recognised as an opportunity within the SWOT analysis.

The requirement to accommodate circa 20,000 additional homes across the plan period provides an opportunity to consider a range of growth locations and development forms, including well-planned urban extensions. The current consultation identifies urban extensions as one of the potential approaches to accommodating future growth, alongside brownfield intensification, new settlements, dispersed village growth and development in well-connected locations. It is considered that all locations should be considered when determining where housing development should be directed towards, proportionately to the sustainability of the site in respect of access to local services, facilities and public transport.

The existing growth strategy has established an appropriate principle of directing a significant proportion of growth towards the Norwich urban area and locations which have good access to employment, services and infrastructure. This approach remains particularly relevant in the context of the increased housing requirement. The GNLP evidence confirms that the existing strategy has focused growth towards the Norwich urban area and other locations with good access to jobs, services and infrastructure.

The emerging GNLP should retain this principle while providing sufficient flexibility to identify further opportunities for growth around established urban areas. The current consultation recognises that the additional housing requirement will require consideration of further extensions to existing towns and villages, alongside other forms of growth.

Costessey is notably relevant in this context. The adopted GNP identifies Costessey as one of the strategic housing growth locations in the west of Greater Norwich and provides for new and expanded communities in the area. The GNLP 2045 should build on the established role of Cotessey within the wider Norwich urban area and consider opportunities for further sustainable growth which can be appropriately integrated with the existing settlement.

The continued prioritisation of brownfield land and regeneration opportunities is supported. However, brownfield development alone is unlikely to be sufficient to accommodate the scale of additional housing need now identified. The GNLP evidence identifies a requirement for approximately 20,000 additional homes between 2026 and 2045 and identifies a range of potential growth options, including brownfield intensification, urban extensions, new settlements, village growth and development in well-connected locations.

The updated Growth Strategy should therefore provide for a balanced range of development types, including brownfield regeneration, urban extensions, smaller and medium-sized sites, and where appropriate, larger strategic developments.
In particular, further opportunities for urban extensions to established settlements, such as Costessey, should be explored. Such developments can provide the needed housing at scale while also creating opportunities for comprehensive infrastructure provision, new public open space, green infrastructure, biodiversity enhancement and sustainable transport connections. This approach is consistent with the existing strategy, which recognises the role of urban extensions in providing sustainable growth close to existing jobs, services and infrastructure.

Additional growth should be directed towards locations that are well related to existing settlements and where development can make effective use of existing services, facilities and infrastructure, while providing opportunities for further improvement and expansion on the range and quality of services.

Costessey represents an appropriate location for additional growth as an established suburb on the western site of the Norwich urban area. The location provides an opportunity for further housing growth to be integrated within the existing community, rather than creating a standalone settlement. Site refs. 25822 and 25833 at the Land to the South of Town House Road are particularly well-related to the existing settlement. A number of bus stops, primary and secondary schools, a convenience shop, Roundwell Medical Centre, sports facilities, public open space, community and religious facilities and a business park with a further offering of cafes, shops and restaurants are all located within walking distance of the site.

The GNLP should therefore recognise the potential for Costessey to accommodate additional growth as part of the wider Norwich urban area, subject to appropriate infrastructure provision and detailed assessment of environmental and technical considerations.

The emerging Local Plan should account for the relationship between individual settlements and the wider urban area. The settlement hierarchy identifies the Norwich Urban Area as being the primary focus of growth with 62% of the total growth planned within this area as a result of it being considered the most sustainable and well-served location within Greater Norwich, with access to employment, services, facilities and existing and planned infrastructure. The current GNLP evidence also identifies that the majority of future growth is likely to need to remain focussed on and around the Norwich urban area, particularly given the significant increase in housing need.

Due to the step-up in housing need across the emerging GNLP period, the settlement hierarchy should provide sufficient flexibility to consider a range of locations and development scales. The current evidence identifies a need for around 20,000 additional homes between 2026 and 2045, with the Plan identifying urban extensions including smaller urban extensions of fewer than 500no. homes, alongside larger strategic extensions, as potential components of the future growth strategy. The hierarchy should therefore not be applied rigidly, but should recognise the relationship between the Norwich Urban Area and the established settlements that form part of its urban fringe.

In this regard, Costessey is well placed to contribute to the future growth of the Norwich urban area. Development on the fringes of Norwich, such as at Costessey presents the opportunity to accommodate additional housing as an extension to the existing urban area, while benefiting from the services, facilities, employment opportunities and transport connections available within Costessey and the wider Norwich area.

Site refs. 25822 and 25833 at the Land to the South of Town House Road provide an opportunity to support this approach, with capacity for approximately 210no. homes as an extension to the existing community, comprising a landscape-led scheme. Its location within Costessey means that development would contribute to the continued growth of the Norwich urban area, while allowing to growth to be planned comprehensively and in a manner that integrates with the existing settlement.

Overall, the settlement hierarchy should continue to prioritise the Norwich urban area as the principal location for housing growth, while recognising that additional sustainable growth will also need to be accommodated through appropriate extensions to settlements within and adjoining the urban area, as well as in other suitable locations across the Plan area. This approach will enable the flexibility required to respond to the significantly increased housing requirement whilst ensuring that growth is directed towards locations capable of supporting sustainable and well-integrated development.

The emerging GNLP 2045 should adopt a proactive approach to housing delivery, ensuring that sufficient sites are allocated to provide a genuine mix and quantum throughout the plan period.

Current evidence identifies a local housing need of 2,950 houses per annum, representing a 34.9% increase compared with the housing need that informed the adopted GNLP. Overall, it has been identified that there is a need for around 20,000 additional homes between 2026 and 2045, with the existing plan and commitments only providing approximately 60% of the total need.

The scale of this additional requirement means that the GNLP 2045 will need to identify a broad range of opportunities, including larger urban extensions to established settlements, alongside smaller sites, brownfield development and growth in appropriate rural locations. Larger, well-planned extensions can make a meaningful contribution to housing supply while providing an opportunity to coordinate the delivery of new and approved infrastructure, transport connections, green infrastructure, open space and community facilities.

The plan should therefore ensure that a sufficient range of sites is identified to provide choice in the market and allow development to come forwards at different rates and scales. In this context, Site refs. 25822 and 25833 at the Land to the South of Town House Road provide an opportunity to contribute to the additional housing requirement through the planned expansion of an established settlement on the fringes of the Norwich urban area. The sites have the potential to deliver approximately 210no. homes alongside new public open space, children playspace, green infrastructure, and improved connections for walking cycling which would benefit both existing and new local residents. Its location in Costessey provides an opportunity to deliver new housing to form a logical extension to the existing community, and to benefit from the services, facilities and transport connections already serving the settlement.