West Norfolk Council warns campaigners that protests over West Winch housing could lead to them being built without road

Campaigners have been warned that their protests about new housing in West Winch could end up causing the very thing they do not want to see – homes being built without a new road.

Residents who live along the A10 in the village were joined by county and borough councillor Alex Kemp yesterday to demonstrate on a number of issues, including what they believe are plans to construct up to 1,100 houses without an access road (see story above).

However, West Norfolk Council and Norfolk County Council have insisted that this will not be the case – and have cautioned that working against the original 300 homes being put up without a road in place could result in exactly that happening.

Both bodies told the Lynn News that they have done “a huge amount of work” to create a scheme that will ensure the road infrastructure is delivered as early as possible.

This is as part of the West Winch Growth plan, which aims to have 4,000 homes built in the next 20 years.

Hopkins Homes has submitted its application for outline planning permission to build the 1,100 homes, which the borough council is currently considering. It is restricted to building 300 homes that connect to the A10 before completing further highway infrastructure – including an estate link road and two roundabouts – that provide a separate connection to the A47.

Only then would it be possible for any further properties to be occupied, the councils say. The current project timeline will see the main housing access road open in 2027, with a “very small number of homes” being built by that date.

Terry Parish, the leader of the borough council, said: “The West Winch Housing Access Road is a vital part of the housing growth that will take place in this area and we are working closely with the county council to deliver it as soon as possible.

“We know that residents are keen to see the road built to both absorb the housing traffic and provide relief along the existing A10.

“There are clear limits on the number of homes that can be built before the new road is in place or, at the very least, a new connection is made to the A47.

“The business case for the road is dependent on the proposed housing coming forward and it is vital that people understand this. To secure the funding we need for the road it is essential that we continue to demonstrate that the housing development is on track.”

Both councils have therefore warned that those campaigning against houses being built before a road could inadvertently make that exact scenario occur.

The Department for Transport, which is providing the majority of funding for the road, could opt not to provide cash for the project if there are no homes for it to service.

A borough council spokesperson said “there is a risk that the developer could appeal any planning refusal and, if successful, could go ahead and build new homes without the wider infrastructure – including the housing access road – that many people are so keen to see delivered as soon as possible”.

Cllr Kemp has repeatedly said that the “only sensible option” is to fully construct a new road for the developments before any homes are built.

She believes that this would allow HGVs and heavy traffic off the A10, therefore calming it to a village road.

“The whole new development will be completely unsustainable,” she said.

“Without this (new road), the new development would be cut off from the village, and the impact on residential amenities would be severe as residents in West Winch and Setchey can’t get out of the access roads or homes safely now.

“Everyone drives on the A10. The whole of West Norfolk would have to put up with much more congestion.

“The A10 often turns into a giant car park. The delays and uncertainty of arrival times for transport are a cost to businesses.

“Hopkins’ proposed roundabout opposite the Winch for access for the development will add to the hazard for pedestrians living next to the Winch pub, without a crossing and the bypass first.”

West Norfolk Council has made clear that there is not a “bypass” to be created.

Cllr Kemp is also concerned that the borough council is “going against” the recommendations of a report it commissioned engineering company Mott MacDonald to carry out into the impact on traffic a new West Winch development would have.

She argued that “highways will not be running a safe highway network if it does not follow its own report”.

However, the councils say that the report, published in 2014, is nearly ten years out of date – and that more recent modeling has been completed to support the development of an access road.

This is in the process of being further updated with 2022 survey data.