APL Planning Statement

Planning Statement For Siting Of A Shed, Onchan Community Wetlands, Church Road And Derwent Drive, Onchan

Aerial view of a residential area showing houses, roads, and a central wooded plot.

1.0 THE SITE
1.1 The site is the Onchan Community Wetlands which lies between Church Road and Derwent Drive in Onchan village. The site is approximately one hectare in area and accommodates a short walk, some parts along boardwalks to protect the underlying terrain and was once a mill pond which has now become naturalised and contains an area of open water surrounded by curragh.
1.2 The site is available to the public from either Lakeside or Church Road. The site is otherwise surrounded by residential properties and the Methodist Church hall to the north west. The Registered Building of Welch House sits at the entrance to the wetlands from Church Road with a small residential estate (Cassa Field) to the north.

Entrance from Derwent Drive, Lakeside

A photograph showing a wooden gate and fence at a property entrance, surrounded by dense trees and vegetation.

Entrance from Cassa Field

Area of wetland and pond within the site

A photograph showing a paved path winding through a wooded area with a stone wall covered in ivy and houses visible in the background.

A photograph showing a wooden fence with a community notice attached, set against a background of trees and foliage with a metal grate in the foreground.

1.3 The site is owned and managed as a nature reserve by the Manx Wildlife Trust whichwas founded in 1973 and is the Isle of Man’s leading nature conservation charity. Itsmembers, staff and volunteers support MWT to protect Manx wildlife for the future by:

• Driving the development of a Nature Recovery Network across the IOM to create more places for wildlife
• Championing Nature Based Solutions to enable nature to improve the wider IOM environment for all
• Connecting people in the IOM strongly to nature and inspiring them to act for wildlife

1.4 Their mission is to protect and enhance our environment, create more spacesfor wildlife, and inspire people to act for nature.

2.0 THE DEVELOPMENT
2.1 Proposed is the siting of a shed within the site, close to the gated pedestrian entrance from Derwent Drive but out of public view. The shed is to be 174cm tall at its highest point, 104cm from front to rear, 163cm high at the rear and 184 cm side to side.
2.2 The shed is metal and finished mostly in a dark green colour.
2.3 The shed is intended to be used for the storage of implements and items associated with the maintenance of the reserve.
2.4 There are not to be any footings or any base and the shed will simply sit on a pressure treated timber base onto which the shed will be secured.
2.5 The shed will sit in a cleared area alongside the entrance:
2.6 The applicant has consulted the service providers who confirm the location of the electricity, water, telephone and drainage routes which run close to the site but which will not be affected by the proposed shed whose installation will not involve any excavation.

A photograph showing a wooden fence and gate at the edge of a property, with a paved path leading to a gate and trees in the background.

3.0 PLANNING POLICY
3.1 The site is designated on the Area Plan for the East which was adopted in 2020, as Open Space where there is a presumption against development. Part of the area is a designated as Wildlife Site (below in yellow) and it has considerable ecological value and is managed as a nature reserve where the protection and enhancement of the habitat and flora and fauna within the site is the primary function.

This image displays a site location plan with a specific plot of land highlighted in yellow and outlined in red. It shows surrounding features such as a Methodist Church, Church Hall, and Main Road.

3.2 There are no Registered Trees or Buildings on the site although Welch House to the south west is Registered (RB 122). The site in its entirety is designated a Conservation Area.
3.3 As the site is not designated for a particular purpose on the development plan, there is a presumption against development here as set out in General Policy 3 and where Environment Policies 1 and 2 protect the countryside and the landscape quality as the most important considerations. The countryside is defined as any area not designated for development.

A map displaying a street layout with labeled buildings including St Peter's Church and a large pink shaded area covering several properties.

3.4 General Policy 3 sets out exceptions to this general presumption including “(h)buildings or works required for interpretation of the countryside, its wildlife or heritage”.
3.5 Ecology is protected in Environment Policy 4 including species of international, national or local importance, designated National Nature Reserves, Areas of Special Protection and Bird Sanctuaries. More specifically, watercourses and wetlands and their associated ecology are protected in Environment Policy 7 which also requires applications which could cause demonstrable harm to a watercourse, wetland, pond or dub to demonstrate how this will not happen including phasing and details of the works involved.
3.6 Development within Conservation Areas must preserve or enhance the character or appearance of the area and any decision on proposed development must take into account the special character of the area (Environment Policy 35 and Planning Policy Statement 1/01

Conservation of the Historic Environment of the Isle of Man CA/2).

4.0 PLANNING HISTORY
4.1 The site has been the subject of various applications for interpretation boards (92/01367/B and 00/00001/C) and a replacement fence (92/01681/B).

5.0 ASSESSMENT AND CONCLUSION
5.1 The proposed works are intended to facilitate the easier maintenance of the site in the interests of its ecology. The shed will enable items to be stored on site rather than having to be brought to the site each time they are required.
5.2 The site has been chosen so that it does not interfere with the wetlands themselves and is accessible. The wetlands area is not particularly large and there is no obvious site within it which is more publicly screened and where it would not intrude into the natural character of the area. Whilst there are trees very close to the proposed shed site, there will be no construction or excavation and the shed will be placed upon the site such that there will be no compaction of the soil or tree roots.
5.3 It is considered that there will be positive benefits for the maintenance of the site from the proposed works and with no adverse impact on the appearance of the site nor its ecology. As such, the proposal is considered to accord with General Policy 3 and Environment Policy 1 of the Strategic Plan.
5.4 Whilst the site is within a Conservation Area, the character of the area where the shed is proposed to be installed is very modern, unlike the Church Road side which is characterised by mostly very old buildings including the church and Welch House. As such, it is not considered that the proposed shed would be incongruous in the proposed location but in any case, will be positioned so that it is mostly screened from public view outside of the nature reserve.
5.5 The applicant would be happy to accept a condition which requires that the shed is used only for the storage of items associated with the maintenance of the Onchan Community Wetlands and that in the event it is no longer needed, that it is removed within 6 months of its last use.

Sarah Corlett 17th January, 2024

APL Planning Statement

Source & Provenance