Hepworth

09
Dec
2020
Friends of the Loxley Valley launch planning appeal fighting fund

Friends of the Loxley Valley launch planning appeal fighting fund

Friends of the Loxley Valley have launched a fundraising drive to fight plans for the Loxley valley township.

Our ‘Save Loxley valley’ fighting fund is being run jointly with our campaign partners CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire.

We are appealing for donations to help us ensure local concerns are voiced effectively at a planning inquiry hearing later this year.

If you’d like to donate, you can give money NOW using the online site GoFundMe:

Why do we need the money?

The fighting fund will help us to prepare for a public planning inquiry later this year.

Developers Patrick Properties have appealed against Sheffield City Council’s refusal of planning permission.

They want to build up to 300 homes on the redundant Hepworth refractory works at the valley’s heart..

A Planning Inspector will hear their case at an inquiry beginning on Monday 12th April.

The hearing is likely to be held online, and will last for an estimated ten days.

Sheffield City Council are fighting the appeal, arguing there were good grounds for refusing planning permission.

We support the council, but we also want the Planning Inspector to be in no doubt about how strongly local people feel.

What will the money pay for?

Your donations will help us to pay for professional planning experts and possibly legal representation to help us to fight our case.

And the more you give, the greater our chances of winning and defending the city’s democratic decision!

We believe that the Loxley valley deserves a better solution than unsustainable mass housing.

Even a small donation will help us on our way. Every single pound donated WILL make a difference and will help us to save the Loxley valley from urban sprawl.

How to donate

This link will take you to the GoFundMe account where you can donate money now 

You can donate using a PayPal account, or by using a debit or credit card.

The fighting fund money is being held in a secure ring-fenced charity bank account by our campaign partners CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire.

If you are a taxpayer, please tick the ‘Gift Aid’ box when you make your donation. This means the charity can claim an extra 25p for every £1 you give.

It won’t cost you any extra, but it will help your money to go further and to work harder!

If you would prefer to donate by cheque, please make your cheque payable to CPRE PDSY. Please write ‘Loxley valley appeal’ on the back of the cheque, and send it to the following address:

CPRE PDSY,
Victoria Hall,
37 Stafford Road.
Sheffield,
S2 2SF.

Thank you so much for your support!

Posted by admin, 2 comments
28
Oct
2020
Developers to appeal against Loxley valley housing decision

Developers to appeal against Loxley valley housing decision

Developers Patrick Properties have said they intend to appeal against refusal of planning permission for their Loxley valley housing scheme.

The company’s agents, Avison Young, have written to Sheffield City Council giving them formal notification of the appeal process.

They say the appeal is likely to be submitted on Wednesday, 4th November.

Then a formal public planning inquiry is likely to follow in the new year.

The letter to the council estimates the length of the inquiry at ten days.

The appeal follows refusal of planning permission for a township of up to 300 homes on the old Hepworth refractory site, as reported earlier on this website. 

The planning application attracted widespread opposition, leading to over 900 objections from local people and organisations.

Friends of the Loxley Valley’s reaction

Friends of the Loxley Valley are disappointed to hear of the appeal.

Now we must wait to learn more about the company’s grounds for appeal.

Once we know more, we will work closely with campaign partners including CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire to give voice to local concerns at the appeal hearing.

We and the CPRE will monitor developments closely and will do our best to keep the community informed as things progress.

Posted by admin, 0 comments
26
Jun
2020
Deadline for Loxley township comments is extended to 24th July

Deadline for Loxley township comments is extended to 24th July

GOOD NEWS: you now have more time to make your views known about the proposed new township in the heart of the Loxley valley.

You have until Friday 24th July to read the hundreds of pages of documentation and to make your views known to Sheffield City Council planners.

The council has now posted new notification notices around the valley.

We urged them to do this because we were extremely concerned that the original notification period was too short.

We wrote to the council saying that the original notification period did not meet legal requirements.

What are the legal requirements for a major development application?

The application for up to 300 homes on the old Hepworth refractory site is an application for major development.

This means the following legal stipulations apply:

  • The application must be accompanied by a Design and Access Statement (DAS). This must be submitted to the planning authority before the planning application can be validated and registered.
  • In this case, the application is accompanied by an Environmental Statement. This means people need more time to assess the documentation. So the ‘consulation period’ goes up from 21 days to 30 days.

The application from Patrick Properties was validated and registered before the DAS was submitted. The DAS appeared on the council website on 3rd June.

But the same website records the validation date as 23rd April.

The consultation period was also too short – 21 days rather than the 30 days for an application with an Environmental Statement.

We are pleased and relieved that the deadline has been extended.

The local community now have the time we need to properly assess the huge volume of documentation.

This includes a vitally important Ecology Report that was posted just four days ago on 22nd June.

How to make your views known

Any concerned person has the right to submit views to the planning department up to the date of the final decision, (i.e. the eventual meeting of the Planning and Highways Committee).

But your views will carry most weight if they reach the planning officer before the end of the new consultation period.

This is the date we refer to above, i.e. it ends on Friday 24th July.

Submission by this date means the planning officer must consider your views before preparing the report that they will submit to councillors.

If you have already submitted your views, you do have the right to post additional comments after reading the new documentation.

You can submit your views by posting them on the city council ‘planning portal’:

Many of you have told us that you have struggled to connect to the planning portal despite repeated attempts.

In this case, you also have the right to submit your comments by email, quoting planning application reference number 20/01301/OUT

This is the email address for comments: planningapps@sheffield.gov.uk

If you continue to have difficulties submitting your views, please let us know.

However you decide to do it, please do make your views known. Every local opinion counts!

Posted by admin, 2 comments
28
May
2020
Deadline for Loxley valley township planning objections is now mid June

Deadline for Loxley valley township planning objections is now mid June

This planning notification on Long Lane (above) confirms that the deadline for comments to Sheffield City Council over the proposed Loxley valley township is now mid June.

The extended deadline follows correspondence between Friends of the Loxley Valley and the council’s planning department.

We were concerned that site notices were missing and neighbour notification letters had arrived late.

We understand the pressures facing planning officers as they try to work from home during lockdown.

But we also think it’s vital that local people have time to properly assess the 1400 pages of planning application documents.

We are pleased to say we had a constructive response. The deadline for comments has now been extended.

The new deadline is mid June

The planning notice in the photograph is dated 22nd May. It says clearly that comments on the planning application “must be received (by the council) within 25 days” of that date.

By our calculations this means the end of the ‘Standard Consulation Period’ is now Tuesday 16th June.

But we think it would be prudent not to leave things to the last minute. We suggest you submit your views no later than Monday 15th June.

How to make your views known

Any concerned person has the right to submit views to the planning department up to the date of the final decision, (i.e. the eventual meeting of the Planning and Highways Committee).

But your views will carry most weight if they reach the planning officer during the ‘Standard Consultation Period’.

This is the date we refer to above, i.e. it ends on Tuesday 16th June.

Submission by this date means the planning officer must consider your views before preparing the report that they will submit to councillors.

You can submit your views by posting them on the city council ‘planning portal’:

Many of you have told us that you have struggled to connect to the planning portal despite repeated attempts.

In this case, you also have the right to submit your comments by email, quoting planning application reference number 20/01301/OUT

This is the email address for comments: planningapps@sheffield.gov.uk

If you continue to have difficulties submitting your views, please let us know.

However you decide to do it, please do make your views known. Every local opinion counts!

Posted by admin, 11 comments