Site LPS 21: Twyfords and Cardway, Alsager

The development of Twyfords and Cardway over the Local Plan Strategy period will be achieved through:

  1. The delivery of around 550 new homes;
  2. Retention of existing office development (approximately 3,000 square metres);
  3. Incorporation of green infrastructure;
  4. An appropriate level of amenity open space and children's play space;
  5. Potential to include:
    1. An extra care development providing housing for the older population.
    2. Appropriate retail provision to meet local needs.
  6. Pedestrian and cycle links to new and existing residential areas, shops, schools and health facilities, including improved pedestrian links to the town centre, the railway station and Talke Road.
  7. Open space provision to accommodate the need for enhanced or new indoor and outdoor sports facilities to accommodate the additional demand from the housing. Provision should be in accordance with an adopted up to date and robust Playing Pitch Strategy and Indoor Sports Strategy.

Site Specific Principles of Development

  1. Contributions to improvements to town centre accessibility.
  2. The existing open space on the Cardway site will be substantially retained or improvements made to the overall open space provision in Alsager.
  3. Retention and incorporation in any development of the woodland areas to the north and east of the site.
  4. Further archaeological investigation on the site shall be carried out in relation to the heritage asset in the north east area of the site.
  5. Contributions towards or delivery of improvements to junctions within the town, bus services and public transport facilities to and from the site, including bus stops, and a new or extended Alsager town centre bus service to and from the site.
  6. Contributions to education and health infrastructure.
  7. The Local Plan Strategy site is expected to provide affordable housing in line with the policy requirements set out in Policy SC 5 'Affordable Homes'.
  8. Contributions towards improvements to the public right of way and informal path to Alsager Railway Station.
  9. The site will be developed only where it can be demonstrated that there is no adverse impact on the Midland Meres and Mosses Phase 2 Ramsar and Oakhanger Moss SSSI, particularly in relation to changes in water levels and quality and recreational pressures.  This should include a Habitats Regulations Assessment of the direct and indirect impacts of the development on the features of special interest. Where impacts cannot be avoided, appropriate mitigation measures will be required to ensure no adverse effects on the integrity of sites.
  10. A minimum of a Phase 1 Preliminary Risk Assessment for contaminated land should be carried out to demonstrate that the site is, or could be made, suitable for use should it be found to be contaminated. Further work, including a site investigation, may be required at a pre-planning stage, depending on the nature of the site.

Justification

15.267 This site is comprised of the former Twyfords Bathrooms headquarters and the premises of Cardway Cartons; the sites are separated by a railway line in active use. It lies within the south eastern part of Alsager with extensive road frontages onto both Crewe Road and Linley Lane. The site is brownfield land within the built-up area of the town, and includes part of a dismantled railway. There is a small portion of greenspace in the south of the site that forms part of an amenity greenspace identified as A30 by the Open Spaces Assessment.

15.268 The site covers an area of approximately 31 hectares. There is good access to the site by road from the town and the A50 and by public transport services along Crewe Road. The majority of the site is currently developed with the predominant uses including warehousing, factory space delivery areas and car parking for staff.

15.269 The Twyfords site has outline planning permission for 335 dwellings (planning application ref 11/4109C).  The Cardway site has outline permission for 110 dwellings (planning application ref 15/2101C), subject to the signing of a S106 Agreement.

15.270 Retention of existing modern office space is considered appropriate in order to maximise the sustainable reuse of the site. However, paragraph 22 of the NPPF notes that planning policies should avoid the long term protection of employment use where there is no reasonable prospect of the site being used for that purpose. The Employment Land Review (2012) assessed the Twyfords portion of the site. It recommended consideration of partial change of use, with the possible exception of modern office development, whilst noting that the site is not in a modern industrial location.

15.271 The council would support retention of the valued trees in the north eastern corner of the site. Full consideration of mitigation and management should be given to the impact on the footpaths that border the site, and the amenity greenspace that falls within it.

15.272 Archaeological investigations will be required on the site due to the presence of Bronze Age Barrow archaeological deposits to the north east of the site. Any necessary mitigation should be put in place, and development should respect the presence of the barrow.

15.273 The possibility of contamination resulting from the previous industrial use of the site must be fully appraised and mitigation undertaken as necessary.

15.274 Any replacement and/or new sports provision should be in accordance with an adopted up to date and robust Playing Pitch Strategy and Indoor Sports Strategy and with Policy SC 2 ‘Indoor and Outdoor Sports Facilities’.

15.275 The council expects that the following are considered in the context of the ecological value of the site due to its proximity to a European site (consisting of either a Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Areas, and/or Ramsar site):

15.276 It has been identified through the Alsager Town Centre Supplementary Planning Document that accessibility to and within the town centre for cyclists and pedestrians needs to be improved.

Indicative Site Delivery

It is expected that employment land allocations in mixed use schemes will be phased in tandem with the housing allocations. Where appropriate, the phased release of employment land will be secured through S106 agreements/obligations.

Policy information

 

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