Object to 650 homes at Home Farm

The 104 acres consist of open, mixed-use agricultural farmland. Under the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), developers must prove "Very Special Circumstances" to build on the Green Belt. The scale of 650 homes constitutes an unjustified encroachment into open countryside and damage to the openness that defines the purpose of the green belt. It would be out of character in this rural location.

This land through the council’s own assessment is some of the highest quality in the borough, it should be protected.
All of this land is classified as either Grade 2 or Grade 3a. National planning policy N2(1)(b) recognises the value of this valuable farmland and it is incorrectly being classed as ‘grey’ belt for the purpose of pushing through development. Green Belt is essential to sequester carbon from the atmosphere, and critical in our fight against climate change.

Hundreds of people use this space every day for walking, dog walking, relaxation, exercise and fresh air. Rights of way will be blocked and this amenity space lost.

The developer net-gain calculations do not replace the immediate and permanent loss of established wildlife habitats, foraging grounds and mature hedgerows that support local species on active farmland,

Adding hundreds of homes will create severe cumulative traffic impacts from 1000+ extra cars. The only transport available from this location is by car. Severe Funnelling Effect on Watling Street: By forcing roughly 1,000+ additional cars—to use a single vehicular point of entry and exit, the proposal will cause severe, localized gridlock on Watling Street. During peak hours, the tailbacks waiting to turn into or out of the new estate will completely paralyze traffic flows feeding into and out of south Radlett, having a knock-on effect through the village causing chaos and complete gridlock whilst worsening air quality.
Aldenham Parish Council’s Traffic Technical Note, May 2026, demonstrated that all junctions assessed are showing capacity issues in the 2026 base scenario. The capacity problems would be further exacerbated as a result of consented development sites in Radlett and traffic growth, with significant increased queuing and delay. Junction improvements are needed and future developments would need to provide mitigation measures to reduce the impact on the highway network. However, it is unclear that any such improvements or mitigations could be sufficient to prevent the severe impact of a development of this scale, given Radlett’s road infrastructure bottleneck, where vehicular permeability is restricted to a handful of historical routes. Radlett relies almost exclusively on a single north-south spine, Watling Street (A5183), in which this proposed development is planning a single vehicular access point as mentioned.
NPPF (Feb 2025) paragraphs 115–116 require that significant transport impacts can be cost-effectively mitigated to an acceptable degree, and that development should only be refused on highways grounds if residual cumulative impacts (after mitigation, considering all reasonable future scenarios) would be severe.
Given the existing capacity problems, any further traffic from new large developments (including other large sites provisioned for in the Draft Local Plan) is considered to produce additional detrimental impacts, escalated/prolonged delays and queuing, and severe residual cumulative impacts on the road network.

Lack of continuous pavement from the proposed site into the centre of the village and train station

Radlett Thameslink station has no lift and there is no step-free access. Radlett is in a valley and walking over a mile to the station up and down hill does not meet sustainability requirements

Radlett, described in its own Neighbourhood plan through to 2036, has a commitment to maintain its ‘verdant village character.’ It sits in a rural setting, on 1930s village infrastructure, and is defined by its single file country lanes and narrow roads, which are consistent in their lacking the possibility of cycle infrastructure or even pavement. This proposal is out of character for Radlett and would be overbearing and overly dominant.

Environmental scoping reports for this specific piece of land have highlighted a high surface water flood risk. Replacing this acreage of absorbent agricultural fields with tarmac and rooftops will severely exacerbate localized flooding risks for properties lower down the ridge. The SuDS calculations rely on artificial engineering models that cannot guarantee safety against unpredictable climate patterns and sloping landscapes.
The applicant’s own Flood Sequential Test concludes that Home Farm does not pass the test. Permission for this development should be refused.

Battlers Green Farm is a prominent local rural asset with historic character. Building a high-density "suburb" directly opposite it damages the rural setting of the farm and alters the historic visual character of the southern entrance into Radlett

While Hertsmere Borough Council has been reviewing potential housing sites to meet government targets, a jump to 650 homes represents a massive, disproportionate population increase for this specific pocket of Radlett. It is Overdevelopment that outpaces the expansion of local doctors' surgeries, dental practices, and broader infrastructure. The development size is disproportionally large in comparison to the existing size of Radlett c20% increase.

Due to infrastructure limitations, and restricted points of vehicular access in and out of Radlett itself, gridlock traffic already occurs, which is exacerbated by essential utilities works, as systems struggle to cope currently with local demand under narrow and windy roads.

The long-term viability and security of an "emergency-only" gate on Common Lane is questionable. If the main Watling Street junction becomes congested, there will be immense pressure or risk of unauthorized vehicular cut-throughs onto Common Lane, which is already narrow, winding, and prone to gridlock.