The designation of the Claybrookes as an SRV is unfair and incorrect. The Local Plan App F states the SRV criteria to be the presence of 2 of 6 listed key services and, where neighbouring villages share a primary school this is to be within acceptable a safe walking distance. HDC's definition of a walkable distance has changed a number of times without proper process or governance simply, retrospectively, to justify the decision to treat Claybrooke as an SRV. This is unsound and unjustified. Options have not been assessed nor even been submitted to HD Council by Officers for proper consideration. The majority (2/3) of Claybrooke Magna is over 800 m from the school in Claybrooke Parva. The CIHT 'Planning for Walking' document shows 400m as a reasonable benchmark for an acceptable walking distance with up to 800m in relation to walking to a place of importance such as a railway station ( or school perhaps?) as does the Manual for Streets . Yet Officers point to a CIHT document dated 2000, one not adopted by the Council as forming the basis for policy to try to justify using a greater distance, Indeed HDC was for some time working to 800m to define acceptable walking distance, up to the point Claybrooke Magna evidenced that the majority of the village was outside of this range. A clear case of adjusting policies within the Local Plan to justify a decision rather than using evidence from consultation to inform outcomes.
The criteria in App F states that the walking distance must be safe. The Parish Council has recognised and reported the strong local concern about the dangerous stretch of pavement young children would have to use were they to walk to school from Magna. The stretch of pavement in question slopes sharply and has a gulley running through its centre. Parents with pushchairs often have to walk in the road at this point as does anyone with impaired mobility. This is clearly dangerous and the matter has been acknowledged by LCC Highways but funding is not available to address. It would be reckless to exacerbate a known risk by allowing further increase in traffic and footfall. To compound safety issues there is no street lighting for much of the stretch and it is not overlooked.
A travel survey conducted May 2017 shows that 92% parents from Magna regularly transport their children to and from school by car. The main reasons cited were time pressures and concern about road safety due to the increasing volumes of traffic, along with the longstanding and well documented concerns about vehicles speeding through the village. Far from encouraging walking or cycling, the trip to school produces further traffic with adverse impacts and therefore is not sustainable as an SRV.
A further significant issue is the considerable local concern about parking problems around the school at pick up and drop off times. The school is situated on a dangerous bend and the parking difficulties and resultant congestion causes a major risk and much local disquiet; indeed the police have been involved. In short any future development would be poorly connected to, and served by, local facilities and adds to a known road safety risk area within the village - contrary to NPPF paras 38, 69 and 70.