The residents of Hoo Village have asked me to thank the Leader of the Council and Kelly Tolhurst, MP for attending the public meeting in Hoo Village on the 30th August and for addressing residents questions relating to community concerns outlined below. As explained, Hoo Village residents cannot cope with any more overdevelopment without Medway Council first putting in place infrastructure funding necessary for essential local services. No real infrastructure investment has been put in place by Medway Council for over 1000 new homes already built in Hoo Village and consequently existing essential Council services have been overwhelmed by 3,000 additional residents being squashed into the existing community and over 2,000 additional cars forced onto local roads.
Local two-lane village roads are overwhelmed and dangerous and cannot cope with any extra traffic. Lorries, buses and cars are mostly having to travel dangerously on the wrong side of the two-lane village roads. Local shopping car parks are full and parking on village roads is dangerous because of inadequate traffic warden services. Villagers are worried about their health and ever-increasing air pollution levels of nitrogen dioxide from increasing numbers of car and HGVs and that the action plan to reduce pollution under the Four Elms Air Quality Management Area will not be achieved. Two local doctors lists are full, with residents having to queue at 7.45am to see a doctor or accept a three-week wait for an appointment. New residents are required to travel over 7 miles to see a doctor. All local primary and secondary schools are full for the foreseeable future, with children being forced to endure long bus or parents car journeys out of the area to schools. Local sewerage systems are overwhelmed. There are no adequate rural nursing homes or home nursing services. In addition, there are inadequate policing and youth services and inadequate public transport services.
New Hoo Village residents are dismayed when they are informed of these major deficiencies in local services and that information is not recorded on the local land search or the Council’s website. This information should not be secret, but a right for new residents to be properly informed of these important lack of health and lifestyle choices for themselves and their children.
Can the Leader of the Council confirm the Council is in the process of preparing a pamphlet advising new local residents either buying or renting property in Hoo Village and Peninsula of these deficiencies in the Council and community service with particular reference to schools, pollution, GP services etc. These deficiencies will be particularly acute for residents with lung diseases, or where new residents, or elderly residents who are non-car users or too poorly to drive will, therefore, have great difficulty accessing services.
Minutes:
“The residents of Hoo Village have asked me to thank the Leader of the Council and Kelly Tolhurst, MP for attending the public meeting in Hoo Village on the 30th August and for addressing residents questions relating to community concerns outlined below. As explained, Hoo Village residents cannot cope with any more overdevelopment without Medway Council first putting in place infrastructure funding necessary for essential local services. No real infrastructure investment has been put in place by Medway Council for over 1000 new homes already built in Hoo Village and consequently existing essential Council services have been overwhelmed by 3,000 additional residents being squashed into the existing community and over 2,000 additional cars forced onto local roads.
Local two-lane village roads are overwhelmed and dangerous and cannot cope with any extra traffic. Lorries, buses and cars are mostly having to travel dangerously on the wrong side of the two-lane village roads. Local shopping car parks are full and parking on village roads is dangerous because of inadequate traffic warden services. Villagers are worried about their health and ever-increasing air pollution levels of nitrogen dioxide from increasing numbers of car and HGVs and that the action plan to reduce pollution under the Four Elms Air Quality Management Area will not be achieved. Two local doctors lists are full, with residents having to queue at 7.45am to see a doctor or accept a three-week wait for an appointment. New residents are required to travel over 7 miles to see a doctor. All local primary and secondary schools are full for the foreseeable future, with children being forced to endure long bus or parents car journeys out of the area to schools. Local sewerage systems are overwhelmed. There are no adequate rural nursing homes or home nursing services. In addition, there are inadequate policing and youth services and inadequate public transport services.
New Hoo Village residents are dismayed when they are informed of these major deficiencies in local services and that information is not recorded on the local land search or the Council’s website. This information should not be secret, but a right for new residents to be properly informed of these important lack of health and lifestyle choices for themselves and their children.
Can the Leader of the Council confirm the Council is in the process of preparing a pamphlet advising new local residents either buying or renting property in Hoo Village and Peninsula of these deficiencies in the Council and community service with particular reference to schools, pollution, GP services etc. These deficiencies will be particularly acute for residents with lung diseases, or where new residents, or elderly residents who are non-car users or too poorly to drive will, therefore, have great difficulty accessing services.”
Councillor Jarrett stated that Councillor Freshwater would be aware of the significant housing pressures facing Medway and the whole country as Councillor Freshwater had been a Member on the Housing Task Group which had set out certain recommendations to the Council, including that it should meet its objectively assessed needs for housing. As such, all of Medway had a part to play in meeting these needs and that Councillor Freshwater should be aware of large scale planning permissions granted in Rainham, Chatham, Gillingham and Strood. In addition, the Peninsula clearly also had a role to play, and recent permissions had been granted for Peninsula Way, Stoke Road and the former BAE sports ground.
Councillor Jarrett stated that it was vital that developments came forward with the necessary infrastructure to meet the needs of prospective residents without unacceptably impacting on those who already lived there. The most appropriate way for this to be done was through the Local Plan, and Councillor Freshwater would be well aware of the significant work that was being undertaken to bring that forward as quickly as possible, following of course, due process.
He stated that Councillor Freshwater was incorrect in his statements about the lack of investment and infrastructure for the Peninsula so far secured through developments. In relation to schools, the Council had provided additional primary school places at the Hundred of Hoo Academy. This would provide a total of 210 additional places as the year groups fill. Plans had also been prepared for a second form of entry at the school, in readiness to meet future demand. In addition, as at 2 October 2017, sufficient spare places were available across all secondary year groups at the Academy to meet expected demand.
He stated that in terms of the three recent planning permissions granted for development at Hoo, at Peninsula Way, BAE Club and Stoke Road, a total of £4.7m had been secured towards the necessary infrastructure to offset the pressures from the development. This included provision for education, open space, sports, health, highways, housing and community facilities.
In addition, previous permissions secured the expansion of the Bells Lane surgery, and he added that Councillor Freshwater had agreed that the issue concerning surgeries was not their physical capacity because the surgeries were large enough, but one of the Clinical Commissioning Group providing enough doctors to meet residents’ needs.
He stated that the three recent planning permissions granted had also included conditions relating to air quality, which would ensure that the developments met the latest guidance, an area where this Council was one of the leading authorities in Kent.
He also referred to a substantial bid to Government for infrastructure funding which had been made in the past month.
He concluded by stating that there were no plans for any pamphlet, and that Councillor Freshwater would be more than capable of producing his own pamphlet. He believed that this matter was indicative of Councillor Freshwater’s hypocrisy because it appeared that he lived in one of the new houses of which he complained so much about and as such, that instead of being a local Member who could be part of the solution, he was actually part of the problem.