S106 Consultation Guidance – 3rd Round – September 2024

by | Sep 19, 2024 | Planning Applications

Update 2 – 24th October

Thumbnail from the Wixams Joint Development Control Committee meeting held on 23rd October 2024

After a 3 rounds of public consultation spanning nearly 2 years, the proposals to modify the S106 agreement for sports and leisure facilities yet to be built in Wixams were put in front of the Wixams Joint Development Control Committee (WJDCC) on 23rd October.

The proposals contained a number of changes which, out of the 198 responses from the public, only 1 person was in support of. Despite the strong opposition the application was put forward to the committee, made up of councillors from Bedford Borough and Central Beds councils. Three members of the community attended this meeting and raised concerns about the proposals, and highlighted that there had been almost no community engagement from the developers or planners, leading to a set of changes which were not popular.

After a healthy discussion and debate, the application was REJECTED by the committee. The developers will now need to find a way to make sure their next set of changes better meet the needs and wishes of our community, ideally through public engagement. Please visit the Wixams Residents Group website to subscribe for updates on this and other issues in Wixams.

You can find the draft minutes and watch the video of the WJDCC meeting from the Bedford Borough Council website:

councillorsupport.bedford.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=390&MId=6643

Update 1 – 21st October

Th deadline for comments has now passed and the application will be decided by the Wixams Joint Development Control Committee (WJDCC). This is a committee made up of councillors from both councils and the meeting is scheduled for 23rd October 2024.

You can also request to ask a question at the start of this meeting by contacting your council:

Despite a large number of objections to this application, the planning officers are recommending that it is approved.

Original Post

There is an open consultation to modify the ‘Section 106’ agreement for the sports and leisure facilities to be built in the rest of Wixams. This is the 3rd set of changes, there have been two consultations so far and we did a full write-up with a lot of details about the application earlier this year:

www.wixams.town/2024/06/s106-guidance

The deadline for comments for the 3rd set of proposals is Tuesday 24th September, it’s really important that you take just a little time to understand the proposals and respond. Alternatively just skip to the Recommended Response section, copy the text, modify it for your views and email it to the planner, it takes only a few minutes.

We have now had a chance to review the proposals for this third public consultation and there are two main changes since the last consultation which are detailed on this page:

  • The proposals seek to reduce the number of football pitches to be built here and in the last consultation residents responded with our recommendation to ask that the pitches not be lost. This time the planners have opened a second planning application which offers you a choice between the ‘Gateway Park’ or the reinstatement or two pitches.
  • There was a proposal for a parkour course in the last consultation, a facility which no one had asked for and which some parents felt would be dangerous. We recommended that people respond that this facility is removed and the developers consult with the community to identify what the teens here actually want. The community clearly sent a strong message because in this consultation the parkour course has been removed and replaced with a ‘teen provision’ which is to be decided at a later date.

A key thing to remember is that S106 money comes from the sale of homes. It’s our money and these applications are the only opportunity to have your say on how that money is spent.

Table of Contents

Application Documents

There are now two planning applications related to the S106 modification. Both councils list the applications on their own planning portals and you can access the details from your council’s portal, the links are below.

Unsure which is your council? Check out this article from the Wixams Newsletter: Mapping Out Wixams – April 23

Bedford Borough Council

Central Bedfordshire Council

Main Documents to Review

This is the third round of consultation and there are now two applications and multiple versions of the documents and maps associated with the applications. Below are the most up to date documents which outline what’s being proposed. The information is not very easy to follow so we have explained it in more detail on this page.

Main application main documents:

Gateway Park application main documents:

Football Pitches Proposals and Issues

The plans for the pitches have been difficult to understand and we have previously given out some wrong information by mistake. Part of the issue has been with the naming of the different types of pitches, for example on one map there are two different names used for the exact same type of pitches. The planners have now provided the table below which makes it clearer what was originally agreed and what is now being proposed.

Table of football pitches taken from the advisory note in application 24-01608-S106A
  • There are only two 3G ‘All Weather’ pitches planned for Wixams. The pitch on Harrier Leys is one of them, and this consultation proposes to give the other to Wixams Academy. This would be utilised by the school and then rented back to the community for a profit. It’s estimated that a 3G pitch costs around £1 Million to build.
  • The remaining adult / senior pitches are grass pitches. These can normally be booked by teams and residents and are open for use by the community outside of these bookings.
  • There is a second planning application open to give an option to reinstate a senior grass pitch and a mini grass pitch.
  • A senior grass and a junior pitch would be included in the area labelled OS4, near to the railway station.
  • Two senior grass, 1 junior and 1 mini pitch would be included in the area labelled OS2, south of the town park.
  • Two junior pitches would be removed from the plans entirely.

Wixams Academy Pitches

This application proposes to give the remaining planned 3G pitch to Wixams Academy for free

This application proposes to give two football pitches to Wixams Academy for free, including a 3G pitch, and they can then rent the pitches out to make a profit outside of school hours. This is a contentious part of this application, in part because the school is an academy owned by a trust, it’s not owned by the public. We have spoken to residents and most agree that giving pitches to the school benefit the students so therefore benefits the community, but they have commented that outside of school hours the pitches should be accessible to residents to use the pitches for free, ideally with gated access from both sides. However, this could be problematic too as the school would be responsible for any issues or damages and they may not want to take this on without any revenue.

One major concern with this application is that only one more 3G all-weather pitch is planned for Wixams and it should be a publicly owned and accessed facility. A better proposal might be to give the school a grass pitch instead, and questions have been asked as to why a school needs an astro-turfed pitch with flood lights when other schools don’t have or need this standard of facility.

There are different options that you can reply with depending on your views:

  • Support or object to the principle of giving pitches to the school.
  • You could support it, but only if the 3G pitch is replaced with a senior grass pitch.
  • You could support it, but only if the pitches can be freely accessed by the community outside of school hours.

Gateway Park vs Football Pitches Option

Application 24/01608/S10A offers a choice between the Gateway park or two pitches

As part of this 3rd consultation there is a second application open (24/01608/S106A) which is giving you a choice. In the north of Wixams, next to the G-Park development, there is a new area named the ‘Gateway’ park. The applicant is proposing that two of the previously removed pitches are added there, with a car park and changing rooms, but this would be by removing the park entirely.

An advisory note is included in the application which we recommend that you read:

24/01608/S106A Advisory Note (BBC version)

We expect that most residents will prefer the park to be retained, especially as there are so few open spaces here. However, if the park is retained it looks like the developers will be allowed to pocket the money they would have spent on the pitches. It’s recommended that if you would like the park to stay, you ask that the developers still be made to provide the pitches elsewhere so that money isn’t lost.

Huge areas of land have been given to the developers for the B&M, Aldi and G-Park warehouses, so it seems wrong that community are being asked to choose between open spaces and pitches on one of the only bits of parkland planned for the town.

Open Space 2 (OS2) Pitches

Open Spaces 2 (OS2) – the main sports area will be south of the town park

South of the town park is an area labelled OS2, this area will be the main sports area of Wixams and there would be a Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA), the proposed ‘teen provision’, a large kids play area, a cricket oval and a pavilion and car park. Four pitches are planned for this area:

  • Two senior grass pitches
  • One junior pitch
  • One mini pitch

This area seem an ideal location for the other 3G pitch and with the pavilion next door that would be a great focal point for football in Wixams.

Wixams Wanderers

The local football club Wixams Wanderers have express an interest in taking on the management of pitches in Wixams. This would make it easier for them to run the club and they have good links with other organisations who can also use those facilities. The club have expressed they would like the 3G pitch to go in OS2, that they can manage it for the council and they would like to manage the pavilion too. Those facilities being grouped together in one area makes that all easier for them to run the club and to bring more kids into the club.

Teen Provision

A ‘teen provision’ is proposed for later inclusion in OS2

A skatepark has been requested by kids in Wixams for years now, but in the 2nd round of proposals a parkour course was included. We recommended that residents responds asking for the parkour course to be removed, that a facility is provided for teenagers, and that the developers need to carry out surveys to identify what that facility should be.

The applicant and planners seem to have listened to residents and this 3rd proposal:

  • Safeguards an area of up to 800 sqm for the facility.
  • Retains a budget to build it along with a commuted sum to cover maintenance for 20 years.
  • Allows the decision on what the facility should be and how it would be managed to be determined at a later stage.
  • Asks the developers to submit a formal planning application to build the facility and need to provide survey data.

This is detailed in the advisory note:

24/01608/S106A Advisory Note (BBC version)

We think this is an excellent outcome and all but guarantees that we will get a skatepark or even more appropriate facility for our teens.

Other Proposals

Here’s a recap of the other proposals in the application which are carried forward from the previous phases:

  • There would be a focus on more centralised clusters of facilities.
  • The number of tennis courts would be reduced from 8 to 6.
  • There would be a reduction in the number of changing facilities to meet the more centralised approach, but no overall reduction in scale.
  • There would be a reduction in the number of children’s play parks though mostly this seems to be due to the more centralised approach.
  • A trim trail / outdoor gym equipment would be included in the sports area close to the town park.
  • The current allotments are 2,875 sqm, this is larger than the 400 sqm agreed in the original S106. A 700 sqm area of allotments would be included close to the station quarter.

How to Respond

To respond to this application you can use the planning portals linked higher up the page or email your planning department using the appropriate email below and quoting the application references. You will need to provide your name and address. More than one person in a household can respond and it’s okay if multiple people use the same wording for some or all of the points made.

The deadline for comments has now passed. The planners have expressed that they will accept submissions after the deadline so we recommend still making a comment about the proposals.

Bedford Borough Council

Central Bedfordshire Council

Recommended Response

Having spoken to residents, parents and other stakeholders such as Wixams Wanderers, we believe response below represents the best interests for Wixams. Please copy and modify this text as you see fit using the information above, making sure to select the right options for you in bold.

Depending on which is your council send your comments in with the application references below and your name and address. There are two applications open for these proposed changes, but you can respond to both in one email.

  • Bedford Borough Council: 22/02544/S106A and 24/01608/S106A
  • Central Bedfordshire Council: CB/22/04477/SECM and CB/24/02491/SECM

I am writing to object to the applications {INSERT REFERENCES} on the following grounds:

  • I support/oppose replacing the Gateway park with football pitches.
  • I object to the removal of the remaining pitches from the agreement, the council should not allow the developers keep the S106 money because there isn’t any land available as they already built on it.
  • I support/oppose giving football pitches to Wixams Academy so they can make a profit from the community.
  • I object to giving the only remaining 3G all-weather pitch to Wixams Academy for free, if they get any pitches they should be grass ones only.
  • The 3G pitch should be a public asset and built on public land. The land labelled OS2 is the best location as it’s central and close to other sport provisions.
  • Please engage with Wixams Wanderers who have requested to manage facilities on the council’s behalf.
  • I support the teen provision and that the developers must consult with the community to find out what the teenagers would like.
  • I object to the removal of 2x tennis courts.
  • I support/oppose including a trim trail in the area labelled OS2.
  • The councils and developers have not carried out any surveys in the community so these proposals are not based on evidence. I would like the planners to engage with the community changing what they spend our money on.
  • The councils have not carried out any public engagement events for this round of changes. For all further changes to the plans for Wixams the planners need to come and speak to us to hear our views and help us understand what’s being proposed.
  • Any community use agreements must involve a public consultation to agree the terms use. This should be completed before the application decision notice is published to ensure the community gets fair access to the facility.

What Happens Next?

Due to the application impacting residents in both local authorities it will be determined by the Wixams Joint Development Control Committee (WJDCC). This is a committee made up of councillors from both councils and the meeting is scheduled for 23rd October 2024.

You can also request to ask a question at the start of this meeting by contacting your council: