PLYMOUTH SUSTAINABLE NEIGHBOURHOODS STUDY Criteria notes in red gives a summary of guidance only – refer to notes above for full guidance.

KEY: How well does the neighbourhood achieve the objective?

Neighbourhood Area: 8 Barne Barton Objective Achieves

objective? Comments Options for Consideration

1. A community with thriving mixed use centres.

A sustainable neighbourhood should have clear & identifiable local & neighbourhood centres, with access to jobs, education, healthcare, leisure, retail and public transport & open space.

1.1 Is there a range of community facilities, consistent with the neighbourhood population? Criteria: Facilities include shops, religious meeting places, community halls, scout huts etc.

The facilities of Barne Barton consist of three convenience stores, a second hand shop, community centre and resource centre, takeaways, two primary schools and a police office. The post office has closed and is now a convenience store with sub post office. There are no district or city facilities in Barne Barton. There are no shops in the central area no pub or café, no business premises, no church, no health facilities and restricted access to sports facilities. These facilities are too few for the population of 4,140. Some of the missing facilities are provided by the district centre of St Budeaux on the outskirts of Barne Barton, this supplies neighbourhood and district facilities such as banks, a library, pubs and churches.

Consider ways of bringing in a further range of essential amenities and facilities that can be used as meeting places for all ages. Encourage developments that provide for a religious meeting place, a public house, health facilities, sports facilities, local employment

1.2 Are community facilities grouped to create identifiable local & neighbourhood centres?

There are two identifiable local centres within Barne Barton:

• Miers Close: local centre, which consists of a convenience store, Tamar View Community Complex, a police office and a community resource centre.

• Barne Road: local centre, which has a convenience store, second hand shop and take away restaurant.

Consider strengthening local centres by locating future facilities in the existing centres to reinforce their identity. Miers Close: local centre consider adding more facilities to strengthen this and turn it into a small neighbourhood centre. Consider creating a sense of arrival for Barne Barton at the junction of Barne Road/Wolseley Road gateway to the settlement.

1.3 Are the current catchment populations sufficient to support the local & neighbourhood centres? Criteria: Local centres - pop.2,000 – 5,000 (av. 3,500) Neighbourhood centres - pop. 5,000-9,000 (av. 7,000)

The current population of Barne Barton is 4,140, which could support a small neighbourhood centre or two local centres. The population is too great for the amount of existing facilities in the neighbourhood. Based on 1692 households, residential density of 31dph and household size of 2.4, actual current catchment populations are approximately: Local centres:

• Miers Close has a catchment area of 3ha giving a catchment population of 190.

• Barne Road has a catchment area of 5ha giving a catchment population of 406.

Neither of the local centres has a large enough population within the recommended walking catchment to sustain it. This is due to the topography of the area, reducing the size of the catchment areas.

Look at ways of bringing more facilities into Barne Barton to provide the community with more support.

Good Makes a significant contribution

Moderate Makes some direct or significant contribution

Poor Does not contribute to the objective

1.4 Are people able to work locally? Criteria: • Good – job ratio above 1.0 • Moderate – job ratio between 0.7 to 1.0 • Poor – job ratio below 0.7

1,706 people (aged 16-74, including unemployed) are economically active in Barne Barton. However, there are only 433 jobs available within the neighbourhood. This gives a very poor job ratio score of 0.25, one of the lowest for Plymouth. This shows there are little available employment opportunities within the neighbourhood. There is a lack of employment opportunities within Barne Barton as there is little industry in the area and too little facilities to provide a significant amount of employment. The lack of education and training facilities in the area may also contribute to the lack of employment. Employment opportunities would consist of the MoD Naval Base, two primary schools (Bull Point Primary School and Barne Barton Primary School) and the local centres.

Explore potential of some local live work units as part of any new developments.

1.5 Are education facilities in close proximity to local & neighbourhood centres? Criteria: ‘Education facilities’ include crèche, primary schools (junior and infants), secondary schools and tertiary education centres.

There are two primary schools within the neighbourhood (Bull Point Primary School and Barne Barton Primary School). These schools are not located close to the local centres, although there is a pre-school held at the community resource centre in the Miers Close local centre. There is no secondary school or a tertiary education centre within the neighbourhood (as the population is not big enough to sustain a secondary school). Barne Barton is in the catchment area for Tamarside Community College (in the adjoining neighbourhood of St Budeaux) providing Barne Barton residents with further education.

There are plans to close these primary schools and open one new school closer to the local centre. Look at ways to create good links between the Miers Close local centre and the new primary school e.g. improved footways, pedestrian crossings, public realm etc.

1.6 Are there places for formal sports, play & informal recreation? Criteria: Open space categories 1 (informal recreation) & 2 (sport and formal recreation) and play areas: • Good – more than one area of both category 1 & 2, of District or above

importance, and areas for play. • Moderate = at least one area of both category 1 & 2, of Neighbourhood

or above importance, and at least one play area. • Poor = less than one area of both categories 1 & 2.

There are 2 areas with neighbourhood importance for ‘informal recreation’ (spaces 001 and 002). There are 3 areas with importance for ‘sport and formal recreation’ (spaces 040 and 141 have city importance & spaces 038 and 039 have neighbourhood importance). However the majority of open spaces are owned by the MoD with no open access to the public. Also space 039 is a fenced off school playing field and therefore has limited public access. Space 003 has both informal and formal/sports recreation and contains a children’s playground. There is currently no indoor sports facility in Barne Barton that is open to the public. The MoD formerly offered services to naval personnel, and the MoD still retains a large stake in the area with its ownership of sports facilities, clubs and open space. This has resulted in inadequate open space and recreational facilities for many of the local residents. There is a lack of level land upon which people can play ball games.

More public provision is required for sports and recreation

1.7 Are there places to meet and socialise for all ages & interest groups? Criteria: Community centres, shopping centres, pubs, squares and public parks within the neighbourhood.

There is a lack of meeting places with no pub, church, square or religious meeting halls. Residents would have to travel into St Budeaux to find meeting areas in the district centre. The only meeting areas in Barne Barton are the community centre and public parks. The community centre provides a youth club, dance club, bingo etc throughout the week and acts as a bar on Friday

There is likely to be a need for additional play facilities, facilities for teenagers and young people, (such as a skate park or basketball court) and places to socialise for adults. Consultation with the local population will highlight specific community needs. Look at opportunities to create public spaces with seating etc for meeting and socialising,

and Saturday night. There are also two basketball courts and a skate park, which would serve as a social area for the older children in Barne Barton.

particularly at local and neighbourhood centres. Greater community use should be encouraged at the new school.

2. A balanced community A sustainable neighbourhood means a balanced community set within a safe and healthy environment. It should comprise a well- integrated mix of decent homes of different types and tenures to support a range of household sizes, ages and incomes.

2.1 Does existing housing stock provide a range of different tenures and types, with a good mix of social and private housing? Criteria: 1. Balance of public/ private housing stock 2. Mix of different types • Good – Good balance & mix. • Moderate – Average balance & mix. • Poor – Poor balance & mix.

No –There are disproportionately high levels of social rented accommodation and little private housing. 1. A very high proportion of the population live in social housing, 17.8% rent from the Council (compared to the national average of 13.2%) and 35.1% rent from Housing Association or Registered Social Landlord (compared to 6.0% nationally). The proportion of owner occupied properties is only 36.9%, which is around half of the national average of 68.9%. In the past ten years, the MoD has gradually disposed of the majority of its properties in Barne Barton, selling these initially to Plymouth City Council, who then sold some properties to the Housing Association. 2. There is a moderate mixture of types of housing in Barne Barton. Provision of semi-detached properties is an average 30.2% (30.2% in Plymouth and 31.6% England/Wales). There is a higher than average amount of terraced properties (36.2% in relation to 26.0% nationally) and flats (29.7% compared to 19.2% nationally). Yet there is very low provision of detached properties with only 3.4% making up the housing stock. This is under a sixth of the national average of 22.8% although the average for Plymouth is only 10.8%.

Look at ways to improve the balance of public/private housing within the neighbourhood. Development opportunities within the neighbourhood should provide a mix of residential types, in particular detached houses. New housing developments should be medium density to increase the population size although some detached housing should be incorporated to increase the diversity of the housing stock. Consider on-going maintenance to improve the condition of public housing, including external spaces.

2.2 Are different types & tenures well integrated across the neighbourhood? There is a mix of housing types within Barne Barton. The south of the neighbourhood is predominantly made up of flats with a group of poor quality high-rise flat blocks along Furse Park. The rest of the housing in the neighbourhood is made up of semi-detached and terraced housing. There is a group of poor quality houses in the south of the neighbourhood, these homes have been fenced off and some of the gates require entry codes. These houses on Berthorn Road are almost hidden away from the rest of the neighbourhood and are not integrated. On the whole semi-detached and terraced houses are fairly well integrated but there is a divide between the flats and houses. There are also clusters of newer better quality housing and older poorer quality housing. The majority of the housing is similar in design and size with the exception of a small group of different styled houses.

Consider trying to create a broader mix of types and tenures across the neighbourhood. Any new developments should include different types of housing.

2.3 Does the neighbourhood have an appropriate balance of economic activity? Criteria: • Good – Above national average employment rate, and below national

average unemployment rate. • Moderate – Around national average employment and unemployment

rate. • Poor – Below national average employment rate and above national

The job ratio of 0.3 shows that there is a lack of employment opportunities within Barne Barton. 6.6% of the population is unemployed, which is almost twice the national average of 3.4% (3.2% in Plymouth). 52.5% are employed which is below the 57.7% in Plymouth and 60.6% in England and Wales. There is a very high proportion of

Look at measures to improve employment opportunities within the neighbourhood. Look at opportunities to create more jobs locally. Look at ways to get people into employment and reduce unemployment e.g. training opportunities.

average unemployment rate. permanently sick or disabled people in Barne Barton of 9.8% which is way above the national average of 5.5%. There is also a high proportion of people looking after home/family, 13.0% compared to 6.5% in England and Wales.

2.4 Is there social deprivation? Criteria: Index of Social Deprivation (2004) national ranking: • Good – neighbourhoods above 10% • Moderate - Neighbourhoods that lie within the national top 3% and 10% • Poor - Neighbourhoods that lie within the national top 3%

Yes – Barne Barton is within the national top 3% ranking of social deprivation and is therefore a priority neighbourhood.

2.5 Is the population healthy? Criteria: 1. Long Term Illness (compared to national average) 2. Life Expectancy (compared to Plymouth average) 3. Assessment of Personal Health (compared to national average)

• Good – Above average for all three criteria. • Moderate – Around average for all three criteria, or above average for

two/ below average for one. • Poor – Below average for two or more criteria.

No – A high proportion of the population has a long term illness, a higher than average percentage described their health as not good, and life expectancy in Barne Barton is the fourth lowest in Plymouth: 1. 19.3% of people in Barne Barton have a long term illness, health problem or disability which limits their daily activities or work they can do (compared to 20.6% in Plymouth and 18.2% in England and Wales). 2. Life expectancy within Barne Barton is 74.3 (compared to 78.6 in Plymouth), which puts the neighbourhood in the ‘most deprived’ neighbourhood grouping. 3. 10.6% of the population in Barne Barton described their health as ‘not good’ compared to 10.1% in Plymouth and 9.2% in England and Wales.

Maybe an introduction of a health centre in the area would improve the health of the local people. Also consider improved access to sport and recreation facilities and improved housing

3. A well-connected community A sustainable neighbourhood is one in which there is a very clear and understandable pattern of streets and spaces providing ease of movement between key destinations, adjacent areas and to the rest of the city.

3.1 Is there a clear hierarchy of streets and spaces? Criteria: • Does the scale of the streets reflect their function. • Are streets well linked.

There is only one access link into Barne Barton via Wolseley Road onto Barne Road. This makes it difficult to travel in and out of the neighbourhood. There are no strategic city or neighbourhood routes within Barne Barton. There are a number of ‘local neighbourhood routes’. The main local route is a ring road that runs around Barne Barton from Foulston Avenue to Poole Park Road. There are smaller roads that come off this ring road into residential streets and cul-de-sacs. The roads are not very well connected and a lot of streets lead into dead ends. This means that a lot of the roads are not permeable and the quickest, easiest route through the neighbourhood is not always possible. There are a small amount of paths that connect the streets but most of these are steep and consist of a large number of steps. The hierarchy of streets is generally well defined, with an identifiable main road and residential side streets.

3.2 Do people have good access to a range of public transport methods? Criteria: Is there a range of public transport facilities within walking distance of dwellings?

The majority of bus stops in the neighbourhood are within a 5-minute walking distance from the dwellings in Barne Barton. The only dwellings that are not in the catchment area (due to the steep topography of the area) is a residential development in the south of the neighbourhood. There are frequent buses that travel into Barne Barton. An additional bus service also provides

Consider placing a bus stop in the south part of the neighbourhood.

residents with a taxi bus serving some of the areas that are not served by the normal bus routes. This taxi bus travels to the shopping hub of St Budeaux. Two small train stations on the edge of the neighbourhood also serve Barne Barton.

3.3 Are the local & neighbourhood centres well served by a range of public transport methods?

Miers Close local centre is well served by public transport, but there are no buses that stop close to the Barne Road local centre. Other bus stops are in close proximity to the two primary schools.

Consider making a bus stop next to the Barne Road local centre, and proposed school site.

3.4 Are people able to travel to work by public transport? Criteria: Census data for working locally.

Yes – Barne Barton is well served by public transport and the vast majority of neighbourhood residents live within the recommended 5-minute walking zone of a bus stop. An above national average 20.6% of the population travel to work by public transport (14.5% in England and Wales and 12.3% in Plymouth). This high figure may reflect low private car ownership rather than good public transport, 41.7% of households in Barne Barton have no car or van (compared to Plymouth 30.2% and nationally 26.8%). 58.0% of the population travel to work by car, which is considerably lower than the Plymouth and national averages (61.1% & 61.5% respectively). 3 bus services link Barne Barton with the City Centre every 20, 30 and 60 minutes Monday to Saturdays and 1 bus every 60 minutes at weekends.

Look at measures to encourage the population who travel to work by car to use public transport. Consider improved links to major employers in the area.

3.5 Are there appropriate green-spaces easily accessible by foot and cycle, within recommended distances? Criteria: • Good – publicly accessible neighbourhood and local open spaces serving

the majority of the neighbourhood (above 75%). • Moderate – publicly accessible neighbourhood and/or local open spaces

serving more than half of the neighbourhood (50-75%). • Poor – publicly accessible neighbourhood and/or local open spaces

serving a limited section of the neighbourhood (e.g. below 50%).

Although there is a vast amount of open space in Barne Barton there is only a small section of which is accessible to the public. This is due to the MoD owning a large stake of the neighbourhood’s green space. Therefore only 50%-75% are able to access the local spaces. If the green spaces were officially open to the public then this percentage would increase significantly. The Barne Barton area is outside the National Cycle Network and there are no other recognised cycle routes within the neighbourhood. There are shortcuts and pathways to the open spaces but many of these are very steep or consist of a large amount of steps.

Consider creating cycle paths throughout Barne Barton.

3.6 Is it easy to move around the neighbourhood by foot and cycle? Criteria: • Are the majority of streets interconnected. • How steep is the topography.

There are a small number of paths and walkways that interconnect the streets but these tend to be steep and with a large number of steps. This makes it difficult to travel by cycle and walk around the neighbourhood. Also there are no official cycle routes in Barne Barton. The majority of streets are not well connected with dead ends and lack of connecting footpaths. The topography of Barne Barton is a relatively steep hill with the Miers Close local centre and open spaces at the top of the hill.

Prioritise access for pedestrians and cycles. Look at ways to improve pedestrian routes around the neighbourhood, in particular to local centres, considering surveillance and lighting etc. Look at ways of promoting non-vehicular transport by incorporating cycle routes through the neighbourhood. Consider providing cycle stands and lockable cycle stores at main facilities, train stations, main bus terminus St.Budeaux and at local centres.

3.7 Is the neighbourhood well connected to adjacent neighbourhoods and city districts?

There are many buses that travel through Barne Barton every 20 minutes to every hour. These buses travel into the city centre and to neighbourhood and city districts. There is also the St Budeaux Taxi Bus that travels from Barne Barton to the nearest district centre in St Budeaux.

There is a direct link to this district centre from Barne Barton via Wolseley Road. However this Wolseley Road link is the only access point into Barne Barton, and causes a bottleneck effect at peak times. The railway line boarders the neighbourhood and therefore cuts Barne Barton off to surrounding neighbourhoods. This together with the one access link into the neighbourhood means that there are not good connections to other neighbourhoods from Barne Barton.

3.8 Is the neighbourhood well connected to citywide facilities? The low car ownership (58.3%) may limit the resident’s accessibility of citywide facilities and attractions. Public transport serves the Barne Barton well traveling into the city centre and to Plymouth’s railway station. Although there is a lack of service in the evening and on Sundays, only one, hourly bus travels into Barne Barton. Coupled with the low car ownership may limit the accessibility of city in the evening and on Sundays.On the edge of Barne Barton are two small train stations, “The Tamar Valley Line” travels along this track going out to Gunnislake and into Plymouth City Centre. The A38 Parkway is close to Barne Barton, which allows residents to travel over the Tamar Bridge and into the city centre. Although the A38 is not easily accessible as Barne Barton only has one entry point on Wolseley Road making access difficult.

There are very limited options of increasing opportunities for improved access to Barne Barton other than frequency of public transport.

4. An attractive and safe neighbourhood. A sustainable neighbourhood should be one that is an attractive and safe place to live in with good quality buildings and public spaces.

4.1 Is there a positive sense of place and identity in relation to the rest of Plymouth? Criteria: • Topography • Urban typology/ era • Typical materials • Typical vegetation/ open space

Barne Barton is situated next to the River Tamar and areas on higher land benefit from magnificent views of the surrounding landscape. There are large amounts of open green areas in Barne Barton. Although a lot of the areas are out-of-bounds for the local residents, there is still a sense of open space. There is a lack of areas with particular historical or architectural interest and there is not a common theme that runs through the buildings in the area. Barne Barton is very much separated from surrounding neighbourhoods and perhaps feels like an isolated island perhaps due to having only 1 access point to the neighbourhood; however this does create a sense of identity and community.

4.2 Is it easy to understand and find your way around the neighbourhood? There is a lack of distinctive landmarks within Barne Barton. Due to the steep topography of the area it is easy to see your surroundings. Although there are little distinguishing landmarks within Barne Barton wide views of the River Tamar, Tamar bridge, the MoD docklands and the city surrounding Barne Barton a can help orientation offering a sense of direction within the neighbourhood. The large number of cul-de-sacs within Barne Barton can make some places more difficult to find and the most direct route is not always possible. The ring road creates a loop in Barne Barton making it easier to find your way around the neighbourhood.

Look at ways of enhancing landmarks within Barne Barton.

4.3 Are there high quality buildings, streets, spaces and parks? • There are two nature conservation areas Look at ways to improve the quality of existing

Criteria: • Conservation Areas • Listed Buildings • Quality of materials • Areas of visual amenity (category 4) and separation/ buffer (category 5)

greenspace

within Barne Barton. Kinterbury Creek and Barne Barton Woods.

• Bullpiont Barracks is the only listed building in Barne Barton, but this is not open to the residents as it is on MoD owned land.

• The old powder magazines at Bull Point are Scheduled Ancient Monuments

• The quality of materials used for the older housing is poor particularly in the south of the neighbourhood. Newer developments have been built to a higher standard.

• Area dominated by post-war housing of lesser quality

• There are 3 areas with importance of visual amenity, spaces 001, 002 and 003 all of which are of neighbourhood importance.

• There are 8 areas with importance as a separation/ buffer: o Spaces 004,040 and 141 are of

district importance. o Spaces 001, 002, 003, 038 and 039

are of neighbourhood importance.

buildings. New development to be of a high quality. Railway Cottages of townscape value, consider for possible local listing.

4.4 Are the streets and spaces well defined by buildings? Due to the steep topography of Barne Barton the houses that line the streets are high on one side of the road and low on the other. The majority of the houses have stairs leading from the road either up or down to the front doors. The bulk of houses also have fairly large front gardens. The dwellings that are lower than the road level are blocked out of view due to shrubbery in the front gardens. The uneven roads are confusing and some of the houses out of view. The buildings do not define the streets and spaces.

4.5 Are streets & spaces perceived as safe? Criteria: TBA

The neighbourhood of Barne Barton is an area of concern in terms of crime, ranking 4th worst neighbourhood in Plymouth.

Review the causes of crime in the neighbourhood that might be related to the physical make up of the urban areas. Consider lighting/ maintenance issues. Increase sense of community be creating a more stable/settled population Consider crown lifting canopies of large lime trees in Foulston Avenue

5. A neighbourhood that respects and capitalises on its environment A sustainable neighbourhood is one that fits in with its natural environment, uses resources efficiently, and utilises its environment as an asset.

5.1 Has development used land efficiently? Criteria: Housing densities.

The housing density for Barne Barton is around 31 dwellings per hectare, which the methodology considers low. Many of the properties within the neighbourhood are semi-detached and terraced with moderately sized front and rear gardens which therefore does not use land efficiently. Topography is a key element in determining built form

Whilst new development should be at higher density levels it is important to use a range of house sizes.

5.2 Has the neighbourhood responded to its natural environment? Criteria: Has development responded to topography and other natural features.

No – the waterfront is not maximised by the residents as this land is taken up by the MoD with authorised entry only. All the green spaces are facing the waterfront and the houses on the other side of the hill are facing out towards the city. This is not utilising the outstanding views that the

Any new development should respond more positively to the steep topography, views and open spaces.

residents could have benefited from. There are only a small amount of houses at the top of the hill that benefit from views of the River Tamar and the Tamar Bridge.

5.3 Are the areas of biodiversity protected and accessible? Criteria: • Does the neighbourhood include areas designated for their biodiversity

interest? Including any of the following, Special Area of Conservation (SAC) / Special Protection Area (SPA) / Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI ) / County Wildlife Site (CWS) / Local Nature Reserve (LNR) / Biodiversity Network Feature(BNF)

• Does the neighbourhood support a linked network of biodiversity features?

• Does the neighbourhood provide access to areas of biodiversity interest.

• Barne Barton is adjacent to the Plymouth Sound and Estuaries SAC and Kinterbury Creek CWS is partially within the neighbourhood. There are 5 biodiversity network features identified within Barne Barton

• The biodiversity features in the western part of the neighbourhood are well connected as all of the features are linked. The BNF in the eastern part of the neighbourhood is only linked by a narrow network feature that runs north from the site.

• There is very limited public access to the areas of land containing biodiversity interest. The only area with public access is within Kinterbury CWS.

New development within this area should protect existing biodiversity features and investigate the possibility of increasing connectivity between sites. Areas of greenspace within the neighborhood should be managed in a more sensitive manner to increase the biodiversity interest of the neighborhood and increase connectivity. Investigation should be made into increasing public access to areas containing biodiversity interest, including the foreshore.

5.4 Are there any adverse environmental health factors? Criteria: • Good - areas outside 1km radius of any macro environmental health

issue. • Moderate – areas within 1km of macro environmental health issue, but

outside 250m radius. • Poor - areas within 250m radius of macro environmental health issue.

No macro level environmental health factors have been identified that might affect Barne Barton. Although Camels Head Sewage Processing Site is within Keyham neighbourhood, just to the south of the boundary of Barne Barton. The sewage works is just over 1km away from the southern boundary of Barne Barton.

5.5 Has the area got an exposed microclimate, or sheltered southerly aspect? Criteria: Topography and location.

The centre of Barne Barton is on a hilltop and feels very exposed to the elements, as this area consists mainly open spaces. Moving down towards the residential area there is more of a sheltered southerly aspect.

New development should consider issues of microclimate and shelter.

5.6 Are there any areas at risk of flooding? Criteria: Environment Agency maps.

Barne Barton has a low risk of flooding and is unlikely to flood except in extreme conditions. The chance of flooding each year is 0.5% (1 in 200) or less. The risk of flooding is along the waterfront and flooding from rivers or sea without defences. There is also risk from Kinterbury Creek.

Consider risk of flood on any proposed development within Barne Barton

NEIGHBOURHOOD SUMMARY The neighbourhood of Barne Barton covers an area of approximately 123ha. Barne Barton is situated in western Plymouth on a peninsula overlooking the River Tamar, physically isolated from St Budeaux and the rest of Plymouth by the railway line. The neighbourhood, has a population of 4140 people, and suffers high levels of deprivation. The neighbourhood of Barne Barton is an area of concern in terms of crime, ranking 4th worst neighbourhood in Plymouth. Barne Barton also has problems with generally poor health and the 4th lowest life expectancy in the City. There are few employment opportunities and a high amount of unemployed people who live in Barne Barton (6.6% of the population). The neighbourhood suffers from a lack of facilities and amenities with very few shops, no pub or café, business premises, church, doctor's surgery or readily accessible post office. The neighbourhood particularly has a lack of areas to meet and socialise for all ages. It has the population of a small town, without the facilities of a village. This is largely due to its unique historical development as a naval estate (formerly the largest Naval estate in Britain), and the subsequent withdrawal of Ministry of Defence interests from the area in the last 20 years, selling off the majority of housing to five housing associations. A very high proportion of the population live in social housing, 52.9% rent from the Council, Housing Association or Registered Social Landlord compared to the national average of 19.2%. Barne Barton is located in a spectacular location with views across the River Tamar and abundant green spaces and it is visible to all incoming river, road and rail users, especially from Tamar Bridge. However, the area suffers from unimaginative housing and a poor quality of public realm. Access to the waterfront is limited due to the MoD installations along the riverbanks.