Major 1,400-home development in Tring rejected despite officials' support

This rejection comes despite a recent report published by council officers backing the scheme.

Called Marshcroft, the project also included plans to build two schools as well as hundreds of homes on green belt land in the Chiltern Hills by Bulbourne Road and Station Road. In the application, which can be viewed on Dacorum Borough Council’s website here, developers outlined a plan for a new two-form entry primary school, a secondary school, a local centre, and a sports hub.

On Thursday Dacorum Borough Council officially rejected the scheme with a majority of councillors voting against the proposals. Earlier this month the BBC’s Local Democracy Reporting Service analysed a council report suggesting the project should go ahead. It was argued that the scheme would meet the Labour Government’s ‘grey belt’ criteria and address the borough’s housing shortages.

Grey belt is a term coined by the Government to describe land which has protected status that does not truly deserve Green Belt categorising. It is claimed that officers within the council felt this applied to the Marshcroft scheme because it does not “strongly contribute” to Green Belt purposes.

However, Harpenden and Berkhamsted MP Victoria Collins was critical of the impact the project would have on the beloved landscape. She said: "This is a huge victory for Tring residents who have fought tirelessly against a development that will have a massive impact on the town and the beautiful Chilterns landscape.”

Harrow Estates, which lodged the application, said the project would include 700 affordable homes, under the Government’s criteria, and create a new ‘garden village’ alongside Tring.

It has been noted that despite having Green Belt status the land by the Grand Union Canal has been included as a potential housing site in Dacorum Borough Council’s Local Plan draft. Dacorum Borough Council is looking to deliver over 17,000 homes in its region by 2041 as outlined in the housing documents.

Ms Collins was not the only high profile detractor of the scheme when similar proposals were published earlier this decade several national news outlets reported local concerns with the scheme.

A common refrain was that Tring, a town of roughly 12,000 residents, could not cope with the significant spike in the population and could become ‘gridlocked’ if more motorists used its fragile roads network.

Campaign groups argued that the new village, which would be built on land east of Marshcroft Farm in Tring, would damage the Chilterns and the appeal of picturesque areas of natural beauty within Hertfordshire.

Yet according to analysis seen by the LDRS, there is a “severe and acute shortfall” of sites capable of sustaining substantial housing developments in Dacorum. Council officers argued this “weighs heavily in favour of boosting housing delivery at the earliest opportunity” by approving schemes such as Marshcroft.

Dacorum Borough Council leader, Councillor Sally Symington, said: “Last night's vote to object to the Marshcroft application was a great result for the residents of Tring who have fought this development for so long. As a local councillor, I have campaigned against this development and voted against including this site in the Local Plan.”

She also highlighted how Labour’s new homes policy has increased housing targets in the borough by 40%.