POLICY KOV1: LOCAL GREEN SPACES

The Neighbourhood Plan designates the following locations as Local Green Spaces, as shown on the Proposals Map:

Bonnington Square Pleasure Garden, Langley Lane
‘Oval Triangle’, Kennington Park Road
Lambeth Walk Open Space, Fitzalan Street/Lollard Street
Old Paradise Gardens, Lambeth High Street
Pedlar’s Park, Vauxhall Walk
Community Garden, Harleyford Road
Vauxhall Park
Pedlar’s Acre Park, Opal Street/Cottington Street
Open Space, Claylands Road
Cotton Gardens Park, Kennington Lane

Proposals for inappropriate development on land located within a Local Green Space will only be supported in very special circumstances.

5.7 This policy designates ten existing open spaces as Local Green Spaces in accordance with §102 of the NPPF. This has the effect of requiring proposals that will be deemed inappropriate by definition, (unless exempted by the NPPF §149 or §150), needing to meet the same ‘very special circumstances’ legal test applying to the Green Belt and Metropolitan Open Land in London. This means that development in these locations is deemed harmful and would not be permitted unless a very special set of circumstances can be proven to outweigh this harm.  

5.8 Only those spaces that meet the NPPF criteria have been designated, as described in the separate Local Green Spaces report. Kennington Park is not proposed as a Local Green Space as it is already identified in the adopted Local Plan as a District Park and is a registered historic park and garden. As such, it has sufficient protection from harmful development.

5.9 The benefits of green spaces, as part of wider networks of green infrastructure, in very densely populated urban areas like KOV are increasingly well understood and extend from air quality to mental health. These networks make a vital contribution to overall quality of life in cities, providing a sense of freedom and sanctuary and somewhere to relax, to play, to enjoy and learn about nature, to meet with friends, exercise and enjoy good quality air. They are a vital shared urban resource. In the earlier community survey of 2017, 456 local people wanted the KOV Forum to increase the protection of precious green spaces in the area from further encroachment by new development.

5.10 The existence of quality open space also improves the biodiversity, positively mitigates flood risk reduction and overall visual attractiveness of the local environment.  It helps create the distinctive character of an area and a sense of belonging for those who live and work there and also for visitors. This policy is therefore also consistent with the vision of the Lambeth’s Parks and Open Spaces Strategic Plan 2020-2025.

5.11 The policy also aligns with the strategic policies of the London Plan and supplements Local Plan Policy EN1 (Open Space and Biodiversity), which does not designate this type of open space on its own Policies Map. Both policies are intended to prevent ‘town-cramming’, which is now especially important in the KOV area that has seen major development and intensification over the last decade. However, they do not undermine the ability for the area as a whole to intensify and for suitable brownfield land to be reused to enable housing growth. The number of sites designated is considered to be a minimum and covers only a small percentage of the overall KOV area.