{"id":39473,"date":"2026-05-18T06:59:36","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T06:59:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/39473\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T06:59:36","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T06:59:36","slug":"southern-water-confirms-u-turn-on-100-home-development-in-eastry-near-sandwich","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/39473\/","title":{"rendered":"Southern Water confirms U-turn on 100-home development in Eastry, near Sandwich"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Check the latest public notices in your area – planning, roads and licensing <\/p>\n

Southern Water has reversed its position on a controversial 100-home development amid concerns over its potential impact on the sewer network.<\/p>\n

The water company had previously raised no concerns over plans to build the scheme on a field off Lower Street in Eastry, near Sandwich.<\/p>\n

\"How\"HowHow the site currently looks off Lower Street, Eastry. Picture: Google<\/p>\n

But the company has since acknowledged it failed to take into account a 94-home development on the former Eastry Hospital site next door – a scheme that has been green-lit but is yet to be finished.<\/p>\n

It is now saying the Lower Street development may now require significant network reinforcement or capacity upgrades before it can proceed.<\/p>\n

Residents fighting the plans are now urging Dover District Council (DDC) to recognise the \u201coverwhelming evidence\u201d against it.<\/p>\n

In a statement lodged on DDC\u2019s planning portal, Southern Water said it has \u201cre-reviewed\u201d the plans.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ascertained that the direction of flow from land on the west side of Lower Street is partially the same as the former Eastry Hospital, with about 73 units from the site heading in the same direction as the other development,\u201d documents explained.<\/p>\n

\"There\"ThereThere are a number of developments planned for Eastry; the five-home development was approved last year<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ran a capacity check that retrospectively included this [the former Eastry Hospital scheme], and the result came back as having no capacity.<\/p>\n

\u201cFollowing a re-review, we have identified that there is currently insufficient capacity within the foul sewer network to accommodate additional flows.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis means that, at present, the network is unable to support further connections or increased demand without potentially impacting performance or risking system overload.\u201d<\/p>\n

DDC received the outline application – submitted by a J Marsden, A Mollart and S Wells – in August, but has yet to make a final decision.<\/p>\n

The 9.7-acre site is included in the authority\u2019s Local Plan – a planning blueprint which earmarks where new homes could be built.<\/p>\n

\"Residents\"ResidentsResidents gathered in September to protest against the plans for 100 homes in Lower Street. Picture: Penny Wilson<\/p>\n

But since the scheme was submitted, campaign group Eastry Says No has raised almost \u00a32,000 to support its opposition to what it calls \u201cinappropriate\u201d proposals.<\/p>\n

Penny Wilson, co-chairman of Eastry Says No, has urged DDC to recognise the \u201coverwhelming evidence\u201d against the Lower Street plans.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cAt what point does common sense prevail?<\/p>\n

\u201cThis proposal is increasingly exposed as a poorly conceived, inadequately assessed and fundamentally unsustainable scheme to build on former farmland at the edge of our village.<\/p>\n

\u201cEnough is enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Penny\"PennyPenny Wilson is urging Dover District Council to recognise the \u2018overwhelming evidence\u2019 against the development<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Lower Street resident Celia Ransley believes DDC missed an opportunity to properly consult Southern Water on both large-scale schemes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is utter madness,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe face the very real prospect of sewage backing up into our homes and gardens.\u201d<\/p>\n

In its new submission to the council, Southern Water has also raised concerns about surface water drainage.<\/p>\n

The company warns if the developer\u2019s drainage system was to fail, it could lead to flooding and the direct \u201cinundation of the foul sewerage system\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"How\"HowHow part of the proposed 100-home development in Eastry off Lower Street could look. Picture: APX Architecture<\/p>\n

If the plans are approved, Southern Water has said any occupation of the homes must be phased in line with sewer network upgrades.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board (ICB) has warned the development would place additional pressure on nearby GP services.<\/p>\n

It estimates the increase in demand would require about \u00a3150,000 to expand or refurbish, based on an estimated 247 new residents.<\/p>\n

The fire service has also raised concerns, warning the estate\u2019s \u201csingle main access route\u201d off Lower Street conflicts with design principles.<\/p>\n

Kent County Council\u2019s highways team has yet to give full approval, citing missing traffic destination data.<\/p>\n

\"Celia\"CeliaCelia Ransley lives in Lower Street and is concerned of the prospect of sewage backing into homes<\/p>\n

The authority\u2019s heritage conservation team has also said the application should not be determined until a survey is carried out on a \u201creally substantial\u201d Anglo-Saxon cemetery located opposite the site.<\/p>\n

In planning documents, the applicants say \u201cthe intention is for a modest collection of houses in a highly sustainable location providing choice to the local housing market and making a worthy contribution to housing supply\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will bring much-needed affordable housing to the neighbourhood,\u201d the statement adds.<\/p>\n

The applicants also say the scheme will \u201censure adequate drainage at the site which will not increase flood risk elsewhere\u201d and acknowledges the need to \u201ccreate a sustainable drainage solution allowing for suitable sized and located attenuation ponds\u201d.<\/p>\n

In a statement, DDC said it carried out the required discussions on both applications with Southern Water.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will bring much-needed affordable housing to the neighbourhood\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSouthern Water was correctly consulted on this application in accordance with our consultation protocols,\u201d a spokesperson added.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were consulted on August 28 on the original submission [of the Lower Street development] and again on February 6 on the amended scheme.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe planning application at the Eastry Hospital site was granted in 2018 and Southern Water were consulted as part of that application and their feedback was taken fully into consideration in the assessment and determination.\u201d<\/p>\n

The spokesman confirmed the Lower Street development is still \u201cunder consideration\u201d.<\/p>\n

In a statement, a Southern Water spokesman said: \u201cHousing matters at local councils are not something that Southern Water can comment on.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not statutory consultees on planning applications and developers have a right to connect to our network when plans are approved by local authorities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Along with the two large-scale projects, a further five homes were approved in November for a paddock off Meadow Lane, opposite the Lower Street site.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Check the latest public notices in your area – planning, roads and licensing Southern Water has reversed its…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":39474,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4],"tags":[1086,1087,529,309,1834,20108,5,6],"class_list":["post-39473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-uk","tag-deal","tag-dover","tag-human-interest","tag-kent","tag-planning","tag-sandwich","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@UnitedKingdom\/116594289214289831","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39473"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39473\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/britain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}