Judge refuses permission for judicial review of planning permission for 10,000 Harlow and Gilston Garden Town project
News / Tue 10th Jun 2025 at 04:34pm
THE High Court has refused a claimants permission to apply for judicial review of the decision of East Herts District Council to grant outline planning permission for 10,000 homes across seven new villages on the border of Harlow.
According to Douglas Edwards KC and Kate Olley of Francis Taylor Building, the claimants were seeking to bring the claim on nine separate and wide-ranging grounds reports Local Government Lawyer.
These were based on the treatment of strategic viability reports, the alleged contravention of ss100D and 100E of the Local Government Act 1972, the alleged impact on the historic environment (specifically the property owned by the claimants), the issue of the alternative siting of sports provision, the treatment of comments made by the Quality Review Panel, the question as to whether the applications should have been referred back to East Herts’ Planning Committee after finalisation of the respective s106 agreements and whether, in accepting separate Environmental Statements for the villages, the defendant local authorityhad failed to assess the cumulative effect of the developments.
Harlow and Gilston Garden Town is a partnership between East Herts, Harlow and Epping Forest councils and Hertfordshire and Essex county councils intended to provide 16,000 new homes by 2034.
East Herts and Harlow in 2022 defeated an attempt to take them to judicial review over aspects of the project.
Mrs Justice Lang ruled then in the High Court then that all six grounds argued by local landowner Roger Beaumont failed.
Mr Beaumont had sought to challenge permissions given by both councils for a new bridge over the River Stort and associated works.
Resident
2025-06-10 16:59:56
Good. It's happening NIMBYs get on board, or move if your view of a field is more important than 1000s of people having a house and a chance at a better life in a well-planned new town. This is -exactly- what happened 75+ years ago to create Harlow as it is now; 1000s of new-build homes built on open green fields with the locals of the time vehemently against the plans, giving new residents the chance at a better life in a well-planned new town. Please do tell me why the idea was perfectly acceptable 75+ years ago, but now it's "oh so completely different" and wrong?
Jennifer Steadman
2025-06-10 17:29:30
Its not about anyone being a 'Nimby'. New homes are needed- desperately. However, these homes are being built without the infrastructure being put in place prior the the build. Let's do the math. 10000 homes so approx 20000+ extra people all needing to use, PAH, local schools, doctors etc because we all know that the developers will eother run out of money before the schools are built or they'll be built last. (Gilden Park as an example) Approx 20000 extra cars coming into Harlow to use junction 7a. 20000 cars using the Eastwick roundabout in the morning. Also the planners reckon the build wont be finished for approx 20yrs or so meaning the disturbance will be a long term thing for those living locally. Badgers setts destroyed, wildlife being disturbed & forcibly relocated. Let's not forget also that none of the small percentage of social homes wont be offered to Harlow residents. Then we will have the major disturbance of the stort bridge pollutung the river...
Jason Fryer
2025-06-10 17:41:14
Ever since I was a kid and the dead end off the roundabout with gates were installed they have been building houses here - For the record I’m in my 50s now - Isn’t it about time they actually got on with it.
Kim
2025-06-10 18:24:43
I want to remind people when Harlow was built, it was built with GREEN SPACES in mind. I know because my father and his 5 brothers helped build this town. . The plan is to swamp our boarders with theses new builds, bringing in thousands upon thousands of more cars into Harlow, we all know what the cost on the green belt will be, and the wildlife, the destruction is emense, thousands of trees ripped from there roots, wild life displaced. And to mention the little villages being swamped by theses monstrosity s. Now theses builds are on our boarders, which means none of theses unaffordable housing will be offered to Harlow, we don't get the council tax. The affordability has dropped and dropped again, since we campaigned to stop this. We just get the chaos. Resident , they were very different times then, when Harlow was built, we didn't have people who wanted to destroy a place, we had people who listened we had people who cared about green spaces, sadly this no longer applies. No longer do we have any sir Frederick's in our world any more, we have people that make theses plans, knowing nothing of the place it's self, or care, because theses planners, and developers don't live here.
Deborah
2025-06-10 18:57:40
How many of these new builds will go to Harlow residents? Our town is ruined by allowing too many outsiders into Harlow. There has to be a limit.
Julie Taylor
2025-06-10 19:32:20
Nimbies are the last bastion of defence against greedy developers who are hellbent on the destruction of our beautiful countryside as well as authorities with their housing numbers to fulfil. This particular development on our border with Hertfordshire affords no benefit to the people of Harlow. This isn’t social housing, and the affordable housing percentage has plummeted from its original figure. HDC will not benefit from the Council Tax generated but our river will be sacrificed to provide transport links. If I’m a nimby for resisting then I’m proud to be so.
Ted
2025-06-10 19:34:41
Resident I understand where your coming from but, why put it on Harlow border . There is plenty of open space where it could have been built with no complaints
Surinder
2025-06-10 19:38:53
The Gilston Villages development is in Hertfordshire (East Herts Council), the developments in Water Lane, East of Harlow and Latton Priory are in Essex and will almost certainly fall within the new Unitary Authority combining Harlow with other neighbouring districts under the Government's local government devolution plans, so Council Tax from these developments will go to the new authority of which Harlow will be part. Therefore, the Council Tax argument that Harlow will not be a recipient no longer has any validity.
Nicholas Taylor
2025-06-10 21:35:02
So picking up on the issues raised by readers. Firstly there is no comparison with what happened in 1947 when much of London had been destroyed in the war. New homes were needed which led to the construction of a number of new towns. Over 21,000 public sector homes were built in Harlow, representing about 90% of all those built.That figure is now likley to be less than 20% despite the need for such homes. Not just homes were built of course but companies built factories and offices where residents could find work. The sites around Harlow have very little space for employment use, meaning that most residents will be commuters. We then need to look at the roads in an around Harlow, which are of course already heavily congested. We now hear that the developers of Latton Priory are already shying away from the construction of a sustainable transport corridor due to cost and land ownership issues and are resorting to argue a case that more buses will stop traffic coming to a standstill. As for Surinder's comment, well that is wishful thinking, Local Government reorganisation will not see the Gilston development form part of the Unitary Authority or even Essex, so none of the Council Tax paid by residents will benefit Harlow.
Adrienne
2025-06-11 05:02:31
I don't want to harp on about old subjects that I have already written about but what about a freebie for our existing infrastructure please.x
ratboy
2025-06-11 08:31:47
As said before all the new builds will be built with heat pumps,solar panels and an EV charge points wont they?Joe Public is being quietly pushed towards net zero not that that is a bad thing in itself but lets see if these housing developers have to follow the same path..I doubt it somehow as usual it will be one rule for us and one for big business.Lets make everybody buy overpriced EVs that are not entirely without an environmental footprint so then we can expand all the airports and pollute everyone anyway.Do councils and central government think we are stupid.
Stuart
2025-06-11 08:32:50
Jennifer - your statement isn't true. All the road upgrades going on in the North of the town are to facilitate HGGT - as in they're going in beforehand.
shel
2025-06-11 10:57:33
Kiss goodbye to the countryside and welcome nose to tail traffic - as if our roads aren't bad enough. Planners and developers deciding on our future and our wellbeing, but who have no connection to our town. If you're pinning your hopes on a new build, good luck. More unaffordable doll's houses. I for one am proud to be a Nimby.
Nicholas Taylor
2025-06-11 19:43:56
Stuart, the works to the North of the Town Centre are to facilitate a new bus lane and segregated cycle ways and footpaths. There will be no work to increase car capacity. So put simply, none of this work will ease the current congestion at the Burnt Mill roundabout and beyond, let alone deal with the huge increase in vehicles on the road when the Gilston development takes place. Those driving in to Harlow from the North are coming from far and wide, a bus, cycling or walking will never serve as a replacement for a car and we all know that HGGT cannot guarantee that bus routes will continue for the foreseable future, look how poor they are now.
Mickaic
2025-06-11 23:18:30
So Essex council election cancelled, until they sort out the new districts , plus our health authority is now called Hertfordshire and West Essex intergrade care board it started in July 22 to over see the use of HNS fund's , And the roads in the town centre by the large roundabout some lanes off it are going to single lanes how much of this planned with out full consent
Mr McGuffin
2025-06-12 00:04:12
To all the people arguing about greenspaces and roads: the "greenspace" being built over is mostly inaccessible fileds that you can't wander on anyway-so noting of value is being lost. If anything by building homes we might actually gain some accessible greenspace, as there will be a park included in the design- which is much nicer that a field next to a noisy road. Speaking of roads, you do know that more lanes doesn't necessarily fox traffic? It's a real thing that you can look up on the Internet, but basically more roads->more drivers->more traffic. Less road-> less drivers->less traffic. But yeah, we need houses more than anything, Remember when houses used to be under 300k? That's the dream right there...
Bryan Saunders
2025-06-12 06:17:20
If there's no additional infrastructure to support the people in the houses then there's no point ( other than developers profits) in building them. New hospital? Extra police? Extra fire stations? Extra schools and colleges? Extra leisure? Extra shopping? Extra doctors and dentists? Extra sewage facilities? And so on. I've not even mentioned transport links, parking, rail and so forth. I could go on but won't. Yes new houses to be built but think about infrastructure first.
Kim
2025-06-12 08:12:41
MR MCGUFFIN.. THESES ARE OUR FLOOD PLANES. ITS ALL WE HAVE TO SAVE US FLOODING. THINK OF THE BIGGER PICTURE, NOT JUST THE GREED.
Stuart J
2025-06-12 09:17:49
I don’t believe that flooding will be an issue, as all new developments have to an area set aside to collect and remove excess water during times of heavy rainfall. Even at the new junction 7A there is a large pond that was constructed just to the north of this junction for this reason. Also the area each side, south of the A414 Eastwick Road / 5th Ave roundabout, is flooded quite often with the excess water from the Stort.
Mr McGuffin
2025-06-12 12:33:27
This isn't about greed nor are they messing with the floodplain... Kim, the people most vocal about "conservation" generally have a vested interest in house prices staying high- this is where the real greed is at. Also, as you could clearly see on the actual plans- the actual floodplain isn't being developed- it's the field on the other bank of the river, which is economocally and aestheticaly useless. I like greenspace, but greenspace needs to be between estates, so thatthe people will actually get to enjoyit. The horsepens next to ASDA are lovely, because you can actually incorporate them on your day-to-day walks around our soon-to-be city. The farm-fields around the town aren't much of a destination.
Seamus
2025-06-12 18:54:51
From Gilston roundabout to Harlow hospital it's 1.8 miles . From Gilston roundabout to Bishops Stortford hospital (not 24 hour or an A&E hospital) it is 12 miles. From Gilston Roundabout to Hertford Hospital ( Does not have an A&E and is not 24 hour) is 10 miles. I wonder what provision the developers and HGGT have put in place for these 10,000 extra homes and their 10,000 plus residents who undoubtedly will aim for/be directed to the nearest hospital , that being Harlow hospital? I would have thought that there must be a level of care that is pro rata to the amount of individuals it serves. Planners rarely plan for people but plan for those who pay them.
Peter lamb
2025-06-12 20:50:48
Remember Politicians both Local and National are elected by the people to Serve the people, we can only stop the relentless changes if we vote them out
Paul
2025-06-12 21:37:58
Regarding the Green Spaces ; the concept of Harlow was a town with significant green spaces within its borders. Green spaces external to it were not a key part of the original concept, though they were there simply because of the site chosen. I would think that for all current residents it is imperative for us to hold on to as much of our internal green spaces as possible.
Nicholas Taylor
2025-06-14 16:23:56
Paul, the pressure to build homes on green spaces in Harlow will without doubt increase in the coming years. A number of the towns green spaces have a degree of protection such as the playing field at the Stow and behind Deer Park which stems from an Act of Parliament dating back to 1936. In addition to this, the hard work carried out by the Harlow Alliance Party (HAP) back in 2019 saw the Governments Planning Inspector take 6 parcels of land off the Local Plan, which otherwise would have been concreted over. Since then HAP has worked with hundreds of residents leading to 16 parcels of land to be designated as Community Assets, which means the council cannot sell the land to a developer until it has firstlynoffered it to the community as a green space. Last Thursday the council agreed to sell of a garage block to a parking firm, I believe the first time this has happened, so selling off green spaces may not seem as unlikley as it might have been.
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