• Contents
• Index of Policies
• Introduction
• Core Policies
• Housing
• Employment
• Shopping
• Transport
• Green Belt & the Countryside
• Sport & Leisure, Tourism & Community Services
• Conservation & Protection of the Environment
• Infrastructure & Resources
• Pollution Control
• Brentwood Town Centre Policies
• Implementation & Monitoring
• Appendix 1:
  Extracts from the Essex Design Guide for Residential and Mixed Use Areas
• Appendix 2:
  Vehicle Parking Standards
• Appendix 3:
  Advertisements and Shop Front Guidance: Additional Advice to Applicants
• Appendix 4:
  Access for Disabled Persons
• Appendix 5:
  Miscellaneous Residential Design Guidance
• Appendix 6:
  List of Abbreviations

In addition to the following guidance, attention is also drawn to Policy H17, and the accompanying paragraph 3.62, dealing with ‘Dormer Windows’, and Policy H18, and the accompanying paragraphs 3.63 and 3.64, dealing with ‘Satellite Dishes’, set out on pages 3.21 and 3.22 of this Local Plan Written Statement.

Proposals for residential development should have regard, where appropriate, to the following:

• Readily accessible private amenity space shall be provided at a standard of 50 sq.m for each unit. Where provided communally a minimum of 100 sq.m private amenity space shall be provided for up to 4 flats.
• Each unit, excluding communal circulation areas, shall have a total floor area of not less than 40 sq. m. where one-bedroom units are provided and not less than 52 sq. m. where two-bedroom units are provided.
• The units should be self-contained, with full domestic facilities, and have individual room sizes to at least accord with the recommendations of the environmental health officer. The creation of houses in multiple-occupation, where amenities and facilities are shared by the occupants, will not normally be allowed.
• The internal layout of each unit of accommodation should generally allow each individual bedroom to be entered independent of another bedroom. Furthermore, bedrooms should not be placed next to or beneath kitchens, living rooms, bathrooms or heavily used circulation spaces of adjoining dwellings unless a satisfactory soundproofing scheme is submitted.

• As a guide, single-storey front extensions should not normally project more than 1.3m in front of the main front wall of the dwelling unless there are particular circumstances, such as where properties are staggered.
• Where the proposed extension is more than one-storey in height:

(a) The extension shall not be erected closer than 1m to the boundary of the property. (A greater distance may be required where appropriate.) This criterion will also apply to extensions over existing ground floor extensions that abut the boundary.

In Hutton Mount, a minimum distance of 1.2m shall apply to all extensions (including single-storey).

(b) The extension should be restricted in size and siting such that the projection would not form an angle greater than 45 from the nearest ground floor window to a habitable room of the adjacent property. This rule will not be applied to a flank window or to a non-habitable room (e.g. bathroom, hallway).

(Note – this restriction would also apply to the siting of a new dwelling and its relationship to existing adjacent properties)

• The porch shall be compatible in size and design with the existing dwelling
• The porch shall have a pitch roof
• The porch where seen as part of the front elevation should be of such proportions as to ensure it is an incidental feature of the overall appearance of the building. In order to achieve this, the width and projection of porches will be restricted in size. As a guide, the width should not normally exceed one-third of the width of the building or be no more than 3m wide, whichever is less, and should not normally project more than 1.3m in front of the main front wall of the dwelling, unless there are particular circumstances, such as where properties are staggered.
• The porch shall not detract from the amenity of adjoining occupiers

• Walls, gates, fences and other means of enclosure shall be of a design and scale commensurate with the street scene and/or character of the area and shall be constructed of materials and of a colour that are in keeping with the locality

• Dustbin enclosures, where necessary, should be provided at a distance of not more than 25m from the carriageway

• Developers of residential sites of less than 0.4 ha. (or 20 units) will normally be required to make a financial contribution towards the provision of a Local Area of Play (LAP), a Local Equipped Area of Play (LEAP) and a Neighbourhood Equipped Area of Play (NEAP)
• Developers of residential sites of between 0.4 and 1.0 ha. (or 20 to 50 units) will normally be required to provide a LAP with a minimum area of 100 sq.m (either on-site or off-site) and make a financial contribution towards the provision of a LEAP and a NEAP.
• Developers of residential sites greater than 1.0 ha. (or 50 units) will normally be required to provide a LEAP with a minimum area of 400 sq.m and 5 types of play equipment (either on-site or off-site) and at least 1 LAP on-site with a minimum area of 100 sq.m and make a financial contribution towards the provision of a NEAP. [A NEAP should have a minimum area of 1000 sq.m and 8 types of play equipment]
• The precise amount of the contribution will depend on the nature and extent of existing provision in the locality, the type and scale of development proposed and specific site circumstances. In all appropriate cases the contribution will include the provision of equipment and the ongoing future maintenance of the site.
• Within larger housing areas (sites of 50 units and above) at least 15% of the site area should be set aside for public open space, part of which should be suitably hard surfaced. In areas deficient in open space or having higher densities and/or smaller gardens more open space will be sought.