 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|---|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|---|
The Fairfield Partnership Launches 'Elsenham Vision' Website.
The Fairfield Partnership today (9 June 08) announced the launch of a new website as a resource for local people in Uttlesford District looking for more information about plans for a new market town on land it controls to the north and east of Elsenham.
The launch coincides with the Government’s official consultation on its fifteen strong Eco-town shortlist. The site will be updated regularly in the coming weeks and months to provide visitors with up-to-date news and information about The Fairfield Partnership’s vision for the site, including both as a potential Eco-town and as Uttlesford District Council’s Preferred Option within its Local Development Framework (LDF) process.
The Department for Community and Local Government’s (DCLG) consultation on its Eco-towns programme is scheduled to close at the end of June, however consultation on Uttlesford District Council’s LDF is ongoing and local residents will get further opportunity to have their say when The Fairfield Partnership undertakes its own programme of public consultation later this year.
The website www.elsenham-info.co.uk – has been designed to make available general information on The Fairfield Partnership’s vision for Elsenham, as well as detailed technical documents submitted to support the proposals. Visitors can also submit their views via an online feedback questionnaire and register their interest in taking part in consultation events.
A community of around 3,000 new homes remains Uttlesford District Council’s preferred option to meet the housing growth targets specified by the East of England Regional Spatial Strategy. The Fairfield Partnership’s land has also been identified by the Government as a potential Eco-town location suitable for around 5,000 homes. Whichever option is pursued, The Fairfield Partnership’s vision for a new community at Elsenham will incorporate the highest standards in design, energy efficiency and environmental sustainability, and come with its own infrastructure, transport, employment, schools, services and open spaces.
A spokesperson for The Fairfield Partnership said:
‘The website is a one-stop shop for information on our aspiration to create a vibrant new community at Elsenham, and we hope that all those with an interest in our proposals will find it useful.
‘It will be kept up to date with all the latest news on our vision for Elsenham, currently being progressed through Uttlesford District Council’s Local Development Framework process as well as through the Government’s Eco-towns programme.
‘We are open to suggestions as to how we can improve the website, to make it more helpful – and we would like to invite feedback on our vision for a new community at Elsenham, so please do fill out the online feedback questionnaire.’
For further information, please contact the Elsenham consultation team at consultation@elsenham-info.co.uk
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notes to Editors
Land controlled by The Fairfield Partnership at Elsenham has been shortlisted for designation as an Eco-town by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG). The decision endorses the strategic merits of Elsenham as a location for a new market town within Uttlesford, which has already been recognised in the emerging Uttlesford Core Strategy. Elsenham has excellent access to the M11 corridor and the West Anglia Rail Link running between Cambridge and London, and is in close proximity to Stansted Mountfitchet, Bishop’s Stortford and Stansted Airport.
A linked new settlement at Elsenham will take its place in the hierarchy of Essex towns and adopt the function of a new market town within Uttlesford.
It will comprise a sustainable mix of uses to meet the day-to-day needs of the new community, and be supported by comprehensive new infrastructure, including new and improved public transport services, focused around a state-of-the-art new transport interchange at Elsenham station and the provision of a new secondary school.
A ‘Green Ring’ will maintain separation from Henham and provide opportunities for leisure and recreation, the growth of food locally, enhanced wildlife habitats and sustainable drainage systems.
A range of studies have already been undertaken to inform the Fairfield Partnership’s strategic master plan vision for land at Elsenham. Further detailed studies are ongoing including a full Transport Assessment and will ensure that the expansion of Elsenham to form a new market town meets the challenge of creating a vibrant new community that promotes low-carbon development and the highest standards of energy efficiency and environmental sustainability.