brentwood.gov.uk

Thank you for giving the Mayor of London the opportunity to comment on your Draft Local Plan.
The Council's most recent evidence is focusing on the tightly defined area of the Borough despite significant interrelationships with its neighbours including London. These are demonstrated in particular through the significant proportion of commuting into the capital (almost 15,000 per day). This underscores the importance of collaboration and the Duty to Co-operate.
The Mayor welcomes the Borough's approach to meeting its housing need and agrees with its conclusion for further work related to London. The Council may also wish to assure itself that proposals for a garden village are congruent with national policy on Green Belt development.
In terms of employment, the Brentwood Enterprise Park is expected to make a significant contribution towards meeting the Borough's need. In the light of its proximity to London, close cooperation with the relevant neighbouring authorities is required. Also, given the Borough's good access to the strategic road network (via M25/A12/A127), it would also be useful to understand better your thoughts on the future consideration of land specifically for industry and logistics, and related opportunities that could potentially arise from the promotion of growth and development across London and its Opportunity Areas in particular.
With regards to retail we would support a town centre first approach and the need to work closely with neighbouring authorities including London on the potential impact of new larger-scale retail development on the vitality and viability of neighbouring centres.
From a transport perspective Brentwood has a very high level of car ownership compared to the national average. Without alternative means of transport the use of cars will continue to be an essential factor in access to services, employment and leisure. Therefore the delivery and encouragement of sustainable transport alternatives is essential.
The Mayor welcomes the Council's corridor-based approach and the consideration of transport implications beyond its boundaries. The arrival of the Elizabeth Line (formely Crossrail) in 2019 at Brentwood and Shenfield will improve the existing metro service and connectivity to Stratford as well as Central London, although the potential longer-term capacity is still under consideration (please see Transport for London's response for further details). Within this context, the Councils may wish to look at growth options close to these train stations and their catchment areas. The Mayor also supports the principle of improvements to the Greater Eastern Mainline between London and Norwich through Brentwood and would welcome policy support for it.