Saxmundham

1,000 new dwellings in Saxmundham? Let the District Council hear your views… by 14th September

Time is running – so if you want to let Suffolk Coastal District Council know what you think of their proposals for the future of Saxmundham, set out in their draft new Local Plan, you have just 11 days left before the consultation deadline!   

The draft Plan can be downloaded from here.  We have put all of the bits we think are relevant to Saxmundham into a shorter (but still 30 pages!) document which you can find here: Suffolk CDC Draft local plan – key excerpts

You can send your comments in as follows: 

By email: suffolkcoastallocalplan@eastsuffolk.gov.uk  

Or by post to: Planning Policy and Delivery Team, East Suffolk House, Station Road, Melton, Woodbridge, IP12 1RT 

You can also comment online from the interactive version of the document itself, at http://consult.suffolkcoastal.gov.uk/consult.ti/LPRPO2018/viewCompoundDoc?docid=10262676

In  a nutshell, the Plan is for Sax to see around 1,000 new homes on the period to 2030, of which 800 would be in a new “South Saxmundham Garden Neighbourhood” effectively occupying the whole space between Sax and Benhall (Kiln Lane) between the B1121 road and the A12 byppass, on both sides of the railway track.  This would increase the town’s population by around 1,750 to 2,250 – or around 40 to 50% on the current population of around 4,500.

While Saxmundham’s population today is under 4% of Suffolk Coastal’s,  the new Plan proposes that Saxmundham sees 22% of all new homes in the District for the period to 2036.  This is because Saxmundham is seen to be a strategically located town, with good communication links by road and rail.

On Friday 31st August, Saxmundham Town Council held a special meeting to discuss the draft Plan.  About 60 members of the public were present, many of whom gave heir views.  It is fair to say that none were in favour of an expansion of the town on such a scale.

The town councillors discussed a draft response paper, which – while welcoming a fair degree of future expansion of the town – was also generally critical of the scale of proposed development, and of the proposal to locate all new development in the south.  Please see our separate article on the Town Council’s draft response, for more information.  The Town Council will finalise its response at its next meeting on 10th September.