Norfolk County Council objects to Mundesley housing plan

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Norfolk County Council, as Lead Local Flood Authority for the area, has lodged objections to plans to build 37 new homes off Cromer Road in Mundesley. North Norfolk District Council is the council that makes the decision on planning applications: Norfolk County Council is just a consultee. Here is the text of NCCs letter to the District Council’s planning officer:

Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order
2015 Construction of 37 dwellings; full planning permission for 36 dwellings (including 13 affordable homes) together with car parking, garages, vehicular access, cycle /
footway accesses, highway works, public open space, landscaping, drainage and
associated infrastructure; and outline planning permission for 1 self-build dwelling
(all matters reserved) at Land Off Cromer Road Mundesley Norfolk.

Thank you for your consultation on the above site, received from the Local Planning
Authority (LPA) on 13 May 2025.

It is the LLFA’s understanding that the applicant has submitted the following
document/supporting information to you, the LPA, for consideration to account for flood
risk and surface water drainage aspects of this application:

• Flood Risk Assessment & Drainage Strategy Statement | Cromer Road, Mundesley
| Barter Hill Partnership | Ref: 9943 | Rev: V.02 | Dated: 21 November 2024
• Site Investigation Report | Cromer Road, Mundesley | Harrison Geotechnical
Engineering | Ref: GN24501_SI | Rev: N/A | Dated: September 2021

The County Council, as Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) and in its role as statutory
consultee to the planning application process, have reviewed the application as submitted and object to this planning application in the absence of an acceptable Drainage Strategy relating to:

• Insufficient information provided to demonstrate compliance with relevant nation
and/or local policy, frameworks, guidance (including best practice) and/or nonstatutory
technical standards.
• Submission of a Surface Water Drainage Strategy that lacks the detail expected by
the LLFA at a full planning application stage.
Reason
To prevent flooding in accordance with National Planning Policy Framework paragraph
181, 182 and 187 by ensuring the satisfactory management of local flood risk, surface
water flow paths, storage and disposal of surface water from the site in a range of rainfall events and ensuring the SuDS proposed operates as designed for the lifetime of the development.

The LLFA will consider reviewing this objection if the following issues are adequately
addressed:
• Detailed discussion into how/where surface water collection and reuse can (or
cannot) be included in the drainage design is provided.
• Detailed discussion/evidence into the suitability of the proposed open SuDS
features with regard to the gradient of the site.
• The applicant reviews the Amenity and Biodiversity pillars of SuDS and provides
evidence and explanation as to how both have been fully achieved in this drainage
strategy through the use of multifunctional, surface level green SuDS.
• The drainage calculations are updated and resubmitted to include all 37 dwellings,
roads and driveways, and 100% of the surface area of all open SuDS features.
• Suitable calculations and discussion are provided to evidence that all storage
features with half drain times exceeding 24 hours have enough spare capacity
following a peak storm for the relevant subsequent AEP event.
• An exceedance route plan is provided alongside detailed discussion into where
surface water would flow during an exceedance event.
• Evidence of groundwater monitoring at the location of the infiltration basin, ideally
including at least one seasonally high groundwater level event, is submitted.
• Pervious uplift is scoped into the site design and updated calculations to reflect this
are submitted if required.
• Appropriate finished Floor Levels (FFLs) for all dwellings are included on the
Drainage Strategy drawing.
• Additional mitigation measures are scoped and discussed to confirm the flood risk
to existing properties downhill of the site is not increased.
• The party responsible for the maintenance and management of the swale and
infiltration basin is confirmed.