Limes Farm could be developed to include a further 100 homes amongst several other sites that will add up to over 300 new homes in Chigwell

Congested unsafe roads are what we will have to expect in Chigwell if Epping Forest District Council have their way. Above an image of an off duty Highways vehicle that caused traffic chaos on Pudding Lane, earlier this year.

Please sign our petition supporting an ongoing free yellow bus service (here)

In December 20717, Epping Forest District Council drafted a Local Plan that provides a base for their core planning policies.  The core planning policies included:

• Achieving Sustainable Development Objectives
• Protecting the Quality of the Rural and Built Environment
• New Development
• Energy Conservation
• Sustainable Building
• Achieving Sustainable Urban Development Patterns
• Urban Form and Quality
•  Sustainable Economic Development
• Sustainable Transport 
• Renewable Energy Schemes

You can read the full document (here)

Rather than bore you with specifics the most important aspect of the document is the permitted development on sites like The Limes Estate (100 homes), The Maypole Pub (11 homes) and land between Froghall Road and the railway line.  In total 11 residential sites have been identified.

Map of proposed development area a clearer and fuller image can be found (here) on the full Local Plan on page 156.

All eleven sites:

The following sites are allocated for residential development: 

(i) CHIG.R1 Land adjacent to The Paddock – Approximately 12 homes 

(ii) CHIG.R2 Woodview – Approximately 23 homes 

(iii) CHIG.R3 Land at Manor Road – Approximately 11 homes 

(iv) CHIG.R4 Land between Froghall Lane and railway line – Approximately 105 specialist homes 

(v) CHIG.R5 Land at Chigwell Nurseries – Approximately 65 homes 

(vi) CHIG.R6 The Limes Estate – Approximately 100 homes 

(vii) CHIG.R7 Land at Chigwell Convent – Approximately 28 homes 

(viii) CHIG.R8 Land at Fencepiece Road – Approximately 6 homes 

(ix) CHIG.R9 Land at Grange Court – Approximately 8 homes 

(x) CHIG.R10 The Maypole – Approximately 11 homes 

(xi) CHIG.R11 Land at Hainault Road – Approximately 7 homes

In the document Epping Forest DC satee:

Vision for Chigwell

Chigwell will provide a range of services and infrastructure to support new and existing communities through the allocation of small and medium sites to meet local housing needs. 

Key priorities for infrastructure in the Village are sustainable transport, health care and education. 

The distinctive communities of Chigwell Village, Grange Hill and Chigwell Row will be celebrated, whilst opportunities will be explored through the redevelopment of The Limes Estate to develop Chigwell as an integrated village. 

A focus on brownfield sites and sustainable Green Belt release will ensure the existing visual identity of the settlement is maintained while providing future homes. 

In particular the important gap between Chigwell Row at the north and Hainault at the south will be protected. 

Care will be taken to maintain the gap between Chigwell and Woodford to the west, whilst the gap with Loughton and Debden will also be retained. 

Future development will preserve and enhance the rural and historic character of the Village, and new development will support new and diverse employment opportunities.

You can read the full extent of plans for Chigwell from the Local Plan from page 147 (click here)

Though CRRA is not opposed to new development per se, we believe that Chigwell is an area with limited infrastructure.  Our schools are filled to capacity, it's extremely difficult to register with a GP, many of our roads are in poor condition and our Parish Council is struggling to pay for a community bus service that helps some of the most vulnerable in our community. We currently do not have the infrastructure to support any large scale development.  

We will challenge Parish Council and EFDC to garner suitable Section 106 agreements and sensible affordable housing commitments for any planned development, that meet the needs of our community in Chigwell Row and wider Chigwell.  Any development must preserve our historic character and visible identity.  We want to protect our Greenbelt land from over development and want to ensure commitments to affordable Housing are adhered to and compliant with the National Planning Policy Framework.

Our community has only recently had the  return of evening street lighting financed by the Parish Council, we almost lost our small community library and will have no easy public transport route to link us to the rest of Essex if we lose our yellow buses. 

Before any further large-scale construction occurs in our community it is necessary that solutions to our long term infrastructure needs are in place.  A good start would be the continuance of our much needed yellow bus service.  EFDC must release the long awaited £800,000 of section 106 funds on approval of our Parish approved planning application for the Chigwell Primary Academy.  Moreover, a review should be undertaken of the success of previous Section 106 agreements so that best practice solutions and assessments are applied going forward.

Please sign our petition supporting an ongoing free yellow bus service (here)