In this week’s edition of Nimby Watch, we’re off to the leafy village of Knowle, a few miles outside of Solihull in the West Midlands…
Okay, where are we looking this time? We’re in the quite large village of Knowle in the West Midlands, which has 4,500 homes (for now) and which is turning into quite the hotbed of innovation, thanks in large part to the Government’s ambitious housing targets.
You’ve used the words ‘hotbed’ and ‘innovation’. That never ends well with you. Admit it, nothing is getting built here any time soon, is it? Au contraire! Developer Kler Group put in an application for an ambitious 450-home development on a triangle of green belt land late in 2023, and after quite a bit of back-and-forthing the development was approved in May this year. It’s one of three developments in Knowle that should eventually result in around 800 new homes.
This feels like a trap. They’re going to turn out to be doll houses or something, aren’t they? What are you holding back? No trap, or at least none that we’ve found so far. In fact, 40% of the homes on the site are classed as ‘affordable’, and they’re even holding back some of the homes to be self-built or customised, which is a nice touch. The planners seem to have been genuinely convinced that this site would qualify as ‘grey belt’ – a new-ish term for low-quality green belt that should be built upon – and approved construction on that basis. There’s space for a new school, new roads are being built, everything seems as it should.
The locals must be thrilled. Now who’s being sarcastic? There is, of course, a lot of local opposition. One resident, talking to Birmingham World, managed a Nimby Watch all-time classic with a quote that began: ‘We are not against new housing, we object to this particular proposal’. The locals’ objections were overridden, though, in large part due to the ‘exceptional need’ for housing in the area.
Well, given their objection was just to that ‘particular proposal’, presumably we can look forward to many more housing projects in Knowle and its environs? Not if the Nimbys have anything to do with it. Because, you see, they think they’ve found a rather significant loophole in the Government’s new national housing strategy, which is calling for 1.5 million new homes, some of which are to be delivered through a new towns programme.
I’m guessing this loophole isn’t about getting more homes into their area, even faster? Funnily enough, it’s not. Councillors in Solihull, the area around Knowle, have noticed that while there are no special protections for villages in the Government’s strategy, there are some special considerations for towns. When considering whether or not land qualifies as ‘grey belt’ – and thus becomes open for development – planners should take care to ensure that one town doesn’t merge into another.
Meaning that you’ve got a better chance of reducing the amount of ‘grey belt’ in your area – and thus reducing the amount of building going on – if you’re a town? I don’t like where this is going… And, well, you shouldn’t! Knowle is going to merge with two other nearby villages and be officially designated as a town. Meanwhile, the village of Balsall Common, about two miles away, is also going to be upgraded to a town – meaning, or so those involve hope, that the green belt between the two becomes much harder to build upon.
So… the Government gets two new towns, but only as part of a bid to make sure it ends up with zero new homes? How very British. You’ve almost got to admire the creativity involved. We recently talked about a proposal similar to this being raised as a madcap scheme by a lone councillor. This one, though, is actually happening. It’s been signed off by councillors and is out for consultation with residents. It could all be signed off in the next six weeks.
How do the residents feel about it? They’re clearly nervous, as are the councillors. In the reporting on the plan, they are repeatedly at pains to stress that this is merely an administrative trick and that everyone can still claim their home is in a village if they so wish – suggesting they’ve got a nervous eye on house prices and desirability. They want to be town only to the extent that it helps them stop building, of course. They don’t want to actually be a town.
Truly, there is no limit to the imagination of the British bureaucrat when it comes to finding ways to do nothing. The Government is fixing over-regulation of planning with new regulation of planning, and that’s always going to mean new loopholes. But national government is always free to escalate, of course. Why not respond with some ambitious new housing targets – and relaxation of planning rules – for newly declared towns?
This week, Nimby Watch is in Axminster, because where else would you go to talk about the technologies of the future? Alright then, where are we off to this time? In this edition of Nimby Watch, we’re focusing in on Axminster, where – Oh, I love that we’re finally doing something different! I’m a huge […]
This week, Nimby Watch is in Bath, where councillors are at loggerheads over the concept of safety. I dislike Bath, and do not think it agrees with me, and yet Bath is to be my home? Aren’t you full of surprises? I didn’t have you down as a fan of Jane Austen, and here you […]
This week, Nimby Watch is in Hendon, a settlement since Roman times and which has had its name – Anglo-Saxon for ‘high hill’ – since at least 1005. Alright. Hendon. Why? Let’s show a bit of enthusiasm for Hendon, shall we? You’re clearly not an aviation history buff – Hendon was the first home of […]
