This isn't just any land; the proposed Story Homes development of around 300 homes on Sandown Road is directly on our precious Green Belt. This specific parcel of land, situated between Sandown Road and the Hazel Grove Golf Course, is crucial for maintaining the very character of Hazel Grove as a distinct community on the edge of the countryside. The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) specifically states that Green Belt land exists to "check the unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas" and "safeguard the countryside from encroachment". Allowing 300 homes here would directly contradict this, pushing Hazel Grove further into urban sprawl and eroding the invaluable open aspect we currently enjoy. Once this significant green field is concreted over, it's lost forever, permanently altering the landscape that defines our identity.
Adding around 300 new homes from the Sandown Road development means potentially bringing 700-900 new residents into Hazel Grove (based on average household sizes). Our local services are already struggling massively. Local GP Patient Survey data shows that in some Stockport practices, only around 31% of people find it easy to get through by phone, which is already below national averages (GP Patient Survey, current data). We're talking about hundreds more people needing doctor's appointments, hundreds more children needing primary school places when local schools are already near capacity, and increased demand on dentists where average waiting times for a first outpatient appointment at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust are around 15 weeks (My Planned Care, current data). The Sandown development will simply push these already overstretched services past their breaking point, making it harder for every existing and new resident to access essential care and education.
Access to the Sandown Road development will inevitably channel hundreds of new vehicle movements onto already gridlocked local roads. We're not just talking about the infamous A6; the immediate impact will be on Sandown Road itself, and then directly onto the already congested London Road (A6), potentially increasing rat-running on residential streets like Torkington Road and Buxton Road. With potentially 600-900 additional vehicle movements each day from 300 new homes, our existing infrastructure simply cannot cope. A typical 10-minute journey in Hazel Grove can already stretch to 25-30 minutes during peak hours, and the traffic assessment for the Sandown scheme must seriously address how this massive increase will be absorbed without bringing Hazel Grove to a complete standstill.
The specific land parcel earmarked for the Sandown Road development is a valuable natural habitat. While detailed ecological surveys for this exact site may be within the planning application, similar Green Belt sites in Hazel Grove are known to support diverse wildlife. This includes species such as the Great Crested Newt, a European protected species whose populations are severely impacted by habitat loss (NatureSpace UK). The site likely provides crucial foraging grounds for Barn Owls, with UK populations already under pressure, and roosting/foraging areas for various bat species. Roe Deer are also known to frequent open green spaces in this area. Destroying this specific green space for 300 homes will directly fragment and eliminate habitats, irrevocably harming the local biodiversity that defines our community's natural heritage.
Our local air quality is already a major concern. Monitoring data for Hazel Grove (site STK5) indicated worrying levels of Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2). Your own 2023 survey showed levels over 20% higher than the national standard of 40 µg/m³ (GOV.UK, Air Quality Statistics), suggesting annual means possibly exceeding 48 µg/m³. The 300 homes at Sandown Road will directly contribute to this by significantly increasing vehicle emissions on our already congested local roads, particularly along the A6 corridor. More cars mean more harmful pollutants like NO2 and particulate matter, exacerbating respiratory problems and significantly worsening the air quality for all residents in Hazel Grove and High Lane. This development would actively work against efforts to achieve cleaner air for our community's health.
The land proposed for the Sandown Road development is critical for natural flood attenuation. While not a primary flood plain, concreting over this specific green space will prevent vital absorption of heavy rainfall, drastically increasing surface water runoff. This directly threatens homes already at risk in Hazel Grove, especially those within the Poise Brook flood warning area (GOV.UK, Flood Warning Info). The additional impermeable surfaces from 300 new homes and associated infrastructure will divert vast quantities of water, putting greater pressure on our local rivers and existing drainage systems. The Environment Agency highlights that increased impermeable areas significantly contribute to flooding (Environment Agency), and without robust, site-specific sustainable drainage systems that truly compensate for this lost natural capacity, the Sandown development poses an unacceptable risk of more frequent and severe flooding for our community.