1. Peel Moat Open Space playground and trim trail under the
current SMBC plan is designated for development, with the building
of 35 residential properties proposed on the Peel Moat Open Space
site.
2.The aim of this petition is to secure the site now as a community
focused local recreation and green space. This would enable over
time for the site to be further enhanced by volunteers and donor
funding as a community asset by requesting SMBC remove the current
developable designation and replace it with a Local Green Space
(LGS) designation which would a afford a degree of protection from
development. For the purposes of this proposal the boundary of the
requested LGS is the existing playground, trim trail including the
grassed areas and the adjacent swale.
4.SMBC Planning Policy Department has stated a rewrite of the
Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) and the
Local Plan has commenced and will include a consultation period.
This is the opportunity to identify sites for Local Green Space
status and to have a site removed from the list of potentially
“developable” sites.
5. The revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) came into
force in July 2018. The NPPF advocates “a presumption in
favour of sustainable development and identifies the three
dimensions of sustainable development as economic, social and
environmental. Access to high quality open spaces and opportunities
for sport and recreation are highlighted as an important aspect of
healthy communities and helping to improve biodiversity, thereby
contributing to sustainable development”.
6. For an LGS designation to be achieved it should meet the
following criteria:
• reasonably close proximity to the community it serves.
• demonstrably special to a local community and holds a
particular local significance.
• recreational value (including as a playing field).
• tranquillity or richness of its wildlife.
• local in character
• not an extensive tract of land.
7.The proposed LGS is a very popular and well used resource. It is
very close to extensive residential housing across the Heatons and
beyond, and benefits from a number of pedestrian and cycle routes
with the potential to enhance the existing green chain. Heaton
Manor estate (262 dwellings) has pedestrian access points to the
proposed LGS and at its nearest point is 50m from the site.
Harmsworth Drive and the adjoining roads are with 50m of the
proposed LGS. Burnage is accessed via a footpath across the Heaton
Moor Golf course. Within a 1km radius of the proposed LGS there are
numerous residential dwellings. There is convenient pedestrian and
cycle access over the railway line which runs parallel to Tatton
Road and four pelican crossings over the A6 which ease pedestrian
access from Heaton Chapel and Reddish. There are extensive
interconnected and far-reaching non-vehicular routes linked to the
site, as detailed in the strategic walking network and the TfGM
interactive map http://tfgm.pindarcreative.co.uk/
8.The current developable designation of the site is inappropriate
it being better suited to the current use as a popular and well
used playground/trim trail and community space, which if designated
as an LGS would be preserved for the local community and more
likely to attract donor support to further the develop the site
with the support of the FPMOS. The site meets the criteria for
designation as an LGS. Taking these factors into account and the
unsuitability of the site for residential development it is
requested the current designation is replaced with an LGS
designation.
This ePetition runs from 27/03/2024 to 01/08/2024.
480 people have signed this ePetition.