Sevenoaks District Council

Local Plan 2015-2035:

Settlement Hierarchy

April 2018

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Executive Summary p. 2

1. Introduction p. 4

2. Policy Context p. 6

3. District Profile p. 8

4. Approach to the Settlement Hierarchy p. 11

5. Updated Settlement Hierarchy for the Local Plan 2015-2035 p. 15

6. Settlement Profiles p. 22

7. Conclusions p. 24

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Executive Summary

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) encourages Local Planning Authorities

(LPAs) to identify within their Local Plans, appropriate locations for development. These

should account for social, economic and environmental opportunities and ensure that the

location of development is sustainable. The Settlement Hierarchy is a useful tool to

determine the role of settlements, according to a number of factors including population size,

services available within a settlement, consideration of Green Belt boundaries and transport

connections.

The Settlement Hierarchy for Sevenoaks District has 5 settlement classifications, ranking

from the most sustainable (Principal Town Centre) to the least sustainable type of

settlements (Hamlets):

Principal Town – Sevenoaks Urban Area (Sevenoaks Town including Bessels Green,

Chipstead, Dunton Green and Riverhead),

Towns - Swanley, Edenbridge (including Marlpit Hill) and Westerham

Local Service Centres – Hartley, New Ash Green and Otford

Villages – West Kingsdown, South Darenth, Hextable, Seal, Brasted, Kemsing,

Eynsford, Crockenhill, Halstead, Leigh, Farningham, Sevenoaks Weald, Knockholt

(with Knockholt Pound), Sundridge, Shoreham, Four Elms, and Horton Kirby..

Hamlets – Penshurst, Hever, Fawkham, Ide Hill, Chiddingstone, Chiddingstone

Causeway, Badgers Mount, Cowden, Underriver, Crockham Hill, Fordcombe, Hodsoll

Street, Ash, Stone Street, Mark Beech, Swanley Village, Chiddingstone Hoath, Toys

Hill, Well Hill, Chevening, Knatts Valley, Bough Beech, Bitchet Green, Heaverham,

Godden Green, Mark Beech and Pratts Bottom.

N.B. Settlements which have been underlined are washed over by the Green Belt. While

Badgers Mount has been classified as a Hamlet due to limited facilities and services, the

settlement has a defined Green Belt boundary.

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1. Introduction

1.1 In 2011, the Council adopted a Core Strategy which sets out the overarching strategy

and vision for the District up to 2026 and identified a number of key strategic policies

to how the vision would be delivered. However, the Government has, since then,

introduced new national planning policy and guidance, which govern how Local

Planning Authorities go about the plan-making process. This includes the National

Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) in 2012 and the National Planning Practice

Guidance (NPPG).

1.2 The Council also adopted its Allocations and Development Management Plan (ADMP)

in February 2015, which was found sound at public examination and in line with the

NPPF. The ADMP states the Council’s commitment to review its pre-NPPF Core

Strategy, so it reflects national policy and guidance. As such, the Council is currently

undertaking a review of the Core Strategy and is currently preparing a new Local Plan

which will cover the Plan period 2015-2035. To achieve this, the Council is preparing

a new evidence base to reflect the current circumstances of Sevenoaks District. Once

completed, the new Local Plan will replace the current Core Strategy and ADMP.

1.3 The Settlement Hierarchy for Sevenoaks District is a key piece of evidence that will

be used to prepare the emerging Local Plan 2015-2035. It helps to define the role and

function of each settlement within the District. This document will help inform the

profile of settlements as well as their capacity to accommodate future development

requirements.

1.4 The Sevenoaks District has a number of settlements, varying in size, character and

function across the District. These include a number of urban areas, villages and

hamlets which consist of only a small number of homes.

1.5 The settlement hierarchy is a way of categorising an area’s settlements to recognise

their different roles. The hierarchy groups together the settlements that have similar

characteristics. At the top of the hierarchy are the larger settlements that fulfil the

most functions, have the best infrastructure (facilities and services) and are the most

accessible by sustainable forms of transport. The smaller settlements, with fewer

functions, infrastructure and transport links are nearer to the bottom of the hierarchy.

This will help the Council determine which settlements are most suitable to

accommodate additional growth (Figure 1).

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Figure 1 – Example of a Settlement Hierarchy

1.6 The Sevenoaks District Settlement Hierarchy was first prepared in 2007/2008 and

subsequently updated in July 2009 and October 2014. The Authority Monitoring

Report 2014/15 reports on changes to the 2014 Settlement Hierarchy in accordance

with the Core Strategy and ADMP monitoring indicators.

1.7 The purpose of this report is to outline the new Settlement Hierarchy for the

Sevenoaks District and how it will help prepare the emerging Local Plan 2015-2035.

The Hierarchy:

Provides a brief overview of the national and local planning policy context;

Describes the broad methodology used to develop the Hierarchy; and

Outlines and justifies the classification of each of District’s settlements.

Settlements with the best access to services (most sustainable)

Settlements without access to services (least sustainable)

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2 Policy Context

2.1 National Policy Context

2.1.1 National planning policy states that any development should take place within

the most sustainable and deliverable locations. The National Planning Policy

Framework (NPPF) states that a series of land-planning principles should be

used when undertaking plan-making and decision-taking, in order to maintain

sustainable development. Paragraph 17 of the NPPF outlines the principles of

development stating that “[…] every effort should be made objectively to identify

and then met the housing business and other development needs of an area and

respond positively to wider opportunities to grow”, while promoting “[…] mixed

use developments, and encourage multiple benefits from the use of land in urban

and rural areas, recognising that some open land can preform many functions (such

as wildlife, recreation, flood risk mitigation, carbon storage, or food production)”.

2.1.2 The NPPF additionally states that the plan-making processes for development

should “not simply be about scrutiny, but instead be a creative exercise in finding

ways to enhance and improve the places in which people live their lives”

(paragraph 17). Furthermore, Local authorities should define a network and

hierarchy of centres that is resilient to anticipated future economic changes.

2.1.3 The NPPF sets out individual planning policies for specific elements of

development, in order to achieving sustainable development. In regards to the

development of town centres, paragraph 23 states that local planning

authorities should “recognise town centres as the heart of their communities and

pursue policies to support their viability and vitality” with “[…] town centres in

decline, local planning authorities should plan for positively for their future to

encourage economic activity”. This includes the development of strong rural

economies, which is important for a majority of settlements within the

Sevenoaks District. Paragraph 28 of the NPPF states that Local Authorities

should promote and retain the local services and community services within

village as these are important community assets.

2.2 Local Policy Context

2.2.1 Sevenoaks District Council is now preparing a new Local Plan. The Council has

produced adopted policies through the Sevenoaks District Core Strategy

(adopted February 2011) and the Allocations and Development Management

Plan (ADMP) (adopted February 2015) to reflect national planning policy and

guidance. The over-arching aims of the Core Strategy’s Spatial Vision promote

sustainable development within the District in the plan period, up to 2026,

including the commitment “to locate development in sustainable locations on

previously developed land, ensuring that the main focus for major developments is

in Sevenoaks, Swanley and Edenbridge” (ADMP paragraph. 1.5).

2.2.2 The policies within the ADMP are reflective of the adopted policies within the

Core Strategy, while maintaining compliance with the NPPF at the national

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level. ADMP Policy SC1 sets out that all development within the District will

be in favour of sustainable development whereby “[…] the Council will take a

positive approach that reflects the presumption in favour of sustainable

development contained within the National Planning Policy Framework”.

2.2.3 This allows the Sevenoaks District to develop in a positive and sustainable

manner. The Council is aware of the constraints that affect development

within the District and have adopted policies that take these into account. This

accounts to the protection of community services and amenity, within

settlements of the District especially rural settlements. The ADMP recognises

that local shopping provision is important to many settlements within the

District and small scale retail development should be allowed in scale with the

settlement. This can be split into town and local centre. A town centre can be

defined with uses including:

Retail development (including warehouse clubs and factory outlet

centres);

Leisure, entertainment facilities and the more intensive sport and

recreation uses (including cinema, restaurants, drive-through

restaurants, bars and pubs, night-clubs, casinos, health and fitness

centres, indoor bowls centres and bingo halls);

Offices; and

Arts, culture and tourism development (including theatres, museums,

galleries and concert halls, hotels and conference facilities)

2.2.4 For a local centre, it can be defined as locally significantly areas of retail to

which specific retail policies apply, in accordance with the NPPF.

2.2.5 Under Core Strategy Policy LO7, the Council seeks to retain local services and

facilities, in order to manage the sustainability of rural locations and

settlements, including the local character and the needs for services. This has

been extended within the ADMP whereby neighbourhood services within

urban confines are equally important as those services that can be lost in rural

settlements (ADMP Policy CF2).

2.3 Emerging Local Plan 2015-35

2.3.1 Following the adoption of the ADMP, the Council committed to reviewing the

Local Plan within five years. The emerging Local Plan will be based on up-to-

date evidence bases, including demographic changes, and the need for new

homes, employment and retail land across the District. Based on an increase in

population growth, headline figures suggest that the District has a housing

need of an additional 12,400 homes across the new pan period (2015 to 2035)

and requires approximately 11.6 hectares of employment land.

2.3.2 It is expected that development will be distributed and delivered according the

sustainability of the settlements within the District. The Settlement Hierarch

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will therefore help determine the general distribution of development in the

new Local Plan, and will form as an evidence base to this.

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3. District Profile

3.1 Sevenoaks District is a predominantly rural district with approximately 93% of land

within the district designated as Green Belt. There are also two Areas of Outstanding

Natural Beauty (AONB) which covers approximately 60% of land in the District.

There is the North Kent Downs to the north of the district and the High Weald to the

south. Both land designations are important in terms of national planning policy and

guidance, with AONBs seen as landscapes of national importance.

3.2 The district has a number of major roads including the M25, M26, M20, A25, A20 and

A21 (Figure 2). These provide access to Greater London, Gatwick, Heathrow and

Stanstead airports, and the Channel Ports as well as Ashford and Ebbsfleet

international stations. Rail services are focused on links to London though services

also serve towards the Kent/Sussex coasts, Gatwick (via Redhill and Edenbridge),

Uckfield and East Croydon. A majority of the larger settlements have a rail station, as

well as a number of the smaller settlements and villages.

3.3 There are 56 settlements within Sevenoaks District. As it is predominately rural, there

are a number of villages and smaller settlements as well as some well defined urban

areas. Approximately half of the settlements within the District have a defined Green

Belt boundary. These tend to be the larger settlements and villages and the remainder

are washed over by the Green Belt:

Settlements with defined Green Belt

boundaries

Settlements washed over by the Green

Belt

Sevenoaks Town Penshurst

Riverhead Ide Hill

Dunton Green Chiddingstone

Chipstead Four Elms

Bessels Green Chiddingstone Causeway

Edenbridge with Marlpitt Hill Fawkham

Swanley Hever

Westerham Fordcombe

Otford Crockham Hill

New Ash Green Cowden

Hartley Underriver

West Kingsdown Ash

Seal Hodsoll Street

Horton Kirby Toys Hill

South Darenth Bough Beech

Kemsing Chiddingstone Hoath

Brasted Swanley Village

Hextable Stone Street

Eynsford Mark Beech

Crockenhill Marsh Green

Halstead Well Hill

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Farningham Knatts Valley

Knockholt with Knockholt Pound Chevening

Sevenoaks Weald Heaverham

Leigh Godden Green

Shoreham Bitchet Green

Sundridge Mark Beech

Badgers Mount Pratts Bottom

3.4 Settlements across the district provide a range of facilities and services which support

the day to day activities of residents, with some settlements having a wider and

greater number of services than others. Due to the rural character of the Sevenoaks

District, a number of smaller settlements have a limited number of services and

facilities available to them, and residents may travel to the large settlements and

surrounding areas outside of the District to use particular services. It is worth noting

that some settlements are washed over by the Green Belt and have a greater number

of services and facilities than those settlements which have Green Belt boundaries.

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Figure 2 – Sevenoaks District

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4. Approach to the Settlement Hierarchy

4.1 This section details the methodology and justification for producing the Settlement

Hierarchy. As the NPPF states, local plans “are the key to delivering sustainable

development that reflects the vision and aspirations of local communities” (para. 150) and

should seek to achieve sustainable development across social, economic and

environment dimensions (para. 152). Therefore, it is important that the Local Plan

allocates potential development sites in sustainable locations which would meet the

future requirements of residents.

Paragraph 17 of the NPPF outlines the principles of development stating that “[…]

every effort should be made objectively to identify and then met the housing business and

other development needs of an area and respond positively to wider opportunities to

grow”, while promoting “[…] mixed use developments, and encourage multiple benefits

from the use of land in urban and rural areas, recognising that some open land can preform

many functions (such as wildlife, recreation, flood risk mitigation, carbon storage, or food

production)”.

4.2 The Settlement Hierarchy uses the following criteria to determine the position and

grouping of settlements:

Criteria Used Justification

The population of a

settlement

The given population of a settlement is a good

indication of its size. This can then be used

proportionally against the other criteria to determine

the position of a settlement in the hierarchy.

The range of facilities and

services available in the

settlement for the

community to meet its day-

to-day requirements

The range of facilities and services available in each

settlement given an indication to how sustainable a

settlement is. It also gives an indication as to

whether some settlements depend on other

settlements to provide facilities and services for its

residents.

The settlement’s access to

education

Access to education is considered as a key service

for a settlement and the local community. Access to

education encompasses all forms of education

provision (i.e. primary, secondary, higher education

such as colleges).

The settlement’s access to

health services

Access to health services is an important service

within a community. Therefore, this is identified as a

facility that contributes to a sustainable settlement.

The settlement’s connectivity

and access to public

transport

It is important that that a settlement is connected by

public transport and other allows greater

choice/opportunities for residents to travel.

Therefore, public transport and connectivity with

surrounding settlements is important when looking

at sustainability.

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It is important to note that a number of other factors could not have been included as

part of the hierarchy assessment. These are detailed in the table below.

Criteria rejected Justification

Car Ownership /

Usage

High reliance on private ownership has been, anecdotally,

one of the main contributors which undermine what is

considered to be a sustainable location for development. This

can lead to arguments of increased congestion on the road

network.

Whilst some areas within the District rely on the use of a

private vehicle to travel because of a lack of public transport,

the issue can be considered as subjective in the wider

context. It is a question of choice and whether there are

suitable alternative modes of transport available. This may

result in residents still using private vehicles, despite a wide

choice of other modes (i.e. buses, trains, cycling) due to other

contributing factors. Therefore it would be unwise to draw a

direct correlation between the use of a private vehicle and

sustainability.

In addition, the number of vehicles within a location can not

directly correlate with the sustainability of a settlement as it

is dependent on individual social and economic

requirements/factors (e.g. mobility requirements, individual

wealth, number of people living within one household etc.).

Therefore, for these reasons, this aspect was not accounted

for within the assessment process.

Car parking

The issue of car parking is equally subjective when looking at

the sustainability of a settlement.

There are two types of car parking that can be identified for

the purposes of assessment; individual and communal.

Individual car parking can be described as car parking that is

available for a household that it designated off-road or

private for the sole benefit of residents. Communal car

parking can be described as on-street car parking without

restrictions or parking to access goods and services (i.e.

town/village centres).

Like car ownership, it is a question of choice and individual

circumstance. The amount of car parking available is useful to

a number of residents who depend on available car parking

to access services and facilities. However, the level of car

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parking available is not an indicator to whether a location is

sustainable.

Therefore, for these reasons, this aspect was not accounted

for within the assessment process.

Travel to work

patterns

The NPPF is clear that unsustainable travel patterns should

not be exacerbated and access to jobs near homes should be

available to ensure sustainability.

Whilst this certainly a valid consideration in terms of

developing sustainable communities, it is not realistic to

assume that if there are local jobs within the area, that a local

person will fill that job. Furthermore, Sevenoaks District has

excellent links with London (i.e. rail and road) where there

high-skilled residents are able to find a variety of well-paid

positions and it is not plausible to assume that the local area

or surrounding Districts and Boroughs can compete with this.

As a result, employment is considered to be a choice for a

resident and therefore, consideration for travel to work

patterns will not be taken into account and will not influence

the settlement hierarchy.

4.3 Population of Settlements

4.3.1 The population of a settlement is a good indication of its size. This can then be

used proportionally against the other criteria to determine the position of a

settlement in the hierarchy. It also gives and indication as to whether

settlements are over or under provided with services and facilities.

4.4 Settlement Services and Facilities Audit

4.4.1 A range of services and facilities were identified as contributing to the

sustainability of settlements. This includes key retail services, community

facilities, health and education provision, as well as transport connections.

These were taken as the basis for an audit of each settlement.

4.4.2 None of the individual services have been prioritised or weighted apart from

public transport where, for example an all day service scores higher than a

peak only service. Some services were deemed as making an essential

contribution towards the sustainability of a settlement especially when

grouped together. These were classified as “key sustainability

services/facilities”.

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4.4.3 On-site surveys were undertaken to determine what services each of the

District’s settlements provided. This was based on a points system whereby a

single point would be awarded for each service/facility present within a

settlement. For example, if a settlement contained two primary schools, two

points would be awarded.

4.4.4 Audits were sent out to town and parish councils for checking, as it is

important that no services or facilities are missed from the audit. For the

purposes of clarity, each town and parish council received one audit sheet

which detailed all settlements within their parish area, along with the services

and facilities in each area.

4.4.5 A total “Facility Score” was then calculated for each settlement which enabled

them to be ranked accordingly to the range of services and facilities they

currently provide. A further point was awarded for a settlement having a

Green Belt boundary. Each scoring mechanism will be expanded upon in the

next section.

4.4.6 National Policy stresses the importance of transport and access as a key

indicator to successful, sustainable development. An analysis of transport links

(i.e. bus and train services) are included, and are included as a separate score

from the Facility score, but will be combined with the total settlement score.

This analysis will focus on both peak and off-peak services per hour.

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5. Updated Settlement Hierarchy for the Local Plan 2015-2035

5.1 Population

5.1.1 As the 2011 Census population data is considered out of date, an approximate

population figure for each settlement was derived from the mid-2015

population projections1 from the Office of National Statistics using Output

Area (OA) data. In most cases, Output Area boundaries do not coincide with

defined settlement boundaries. If part of the settlement falls within a

particular OA, then this was included in the total for the settlement. The

quoted population may therefore slightly exceed the population living within

the defined settlement boundary.

5.1.2 For some very small settlements it was not possible to calculate a settlement’s

population due to the geographical limitations with OA data. Where this was

the case, an estimate for each settlement is given based on the electoral role

(adding an extra 25% for those not eligible to vote).

5.1.3 A point was then awarded for every 1000th resident within the settlement. It is

important to note that the populations have not been rounded up for the

purposes of the scoring.

Table 1: Settlement Population and Scores

Settlement Population (ONS mid

2015 projection)

Population Score (per

1000th resident)

Sevenoaks Urban Area

(Areas outside of the green

belt including Sevenoaks

Town, Bessels Green,

Chipstead, Dunton Green

and Riverhead)

29,218 29

Swanley 16,112 16

Edenbridge (including

Marlpitt Hill) 8,847 8

New Ash Green 5,941 5

Hartley 4,800 4

West Kingsdown 4,667 4

Kemsing 4,073 4

Hextable 4,044 4

Otford 3,474 3

Westerham 3,368 3

South Darenth 2,130 2

Eynsford 1,674 1

1 Office of National Statistics (ONS) mid-2015 population projections (October 2016)

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/datasets/censusoutputareaestimatesinthesoutheastregionofengland

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Seal 1,590 1

Crockenhill 1,574 1

Leigh 1,274 1

Farningham 1,204 1

Halstead 1,063 1

Horton Kirby 1,002 1

Brasted 878 0

Sundridge 846 0

Sevenoaks Weald 812 0

Shoreham 804 0

Penshurst 762 0

Knockholt 754 0

Ide Hill 722 0

Swanley Village 712 0

Badgers Mount 647 0

Four Elms 602 0

Hodsoll Street 561 0

Cowden 517 0

Knatts Valley 484 0

Bough Beech 437 0

Fawkham 429 0

Chiddingstone Causeway 418 0

Chiddingstone Hoath 409 0

Ash 376 0

Stone Street 365 0

Hever 358 0

Underriver 335 0

Crockham Hill 326 0

Toys Hill 316 0

Mark Beech 311 0

Fordcombe 309 0

Bitchet Green 305 0

Well Hill 278 0

Heaverham 255 0

Chevening 250 0

5.2 Green Belt Boundaries

5.2.1 Current policy in the NPPF stresses the importance of protecting the Green

Belt, by identifying appropriate development opportunities within existing

settlement boundaries (i.e. brownfield land). As paragraph 80 of the NPPF

states the function of the Green Belt is to check unrestricted sprawl from

large built up areas, as well as protecting the merging of towns and protecting

the countryside from encroachment.

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5.2.2 Therefore, settlements with defined Green Belt boundaries are more likely to

be sustainable locations, than those settlements that are washed over by the

Green Belt. This can to due to identifying potential urban renewal and

regeneration opportunities with vacant brownfield sites within larger town

and villages.

The following settlements have a defined Green Belt boundary and therefore will

receive one point

Sevenoaks Town Riverhead

Dunton Green Kemsing

Chipstead Brasted

Bessels Green Hextable

Edenbridge with Marlpitt Hill Eynsford

Swanley Crockenhill

Westerham Halstead

Otford Farningham

New Ash Green Knockholt with Knockholt Pound

Hartley Sevenoaks Weald

West Kingsdown Leigh

Seal Shoreham

Horton Kirby Sundridge

South Darenth Badgers Mount

N.B - As all other settlements within the District are washed over by Green Belt (see

para. 3.3), those settlements will not receive a point

5.3 Facility Scoring

5.3.1 It is important to understand the number of facilities and services that are

available for the local community to meet their day-to-day needs. The table

below lists a number of services and facilities that can a settlement may have

available.

5.3.2 Some services were deemed as making an essential contribution towards the

sustainability of a settlement especially when grouped together. These were

classified as “key sustainability services/facilities”. Settlements with four or

more services have been highlighted during the assessment of each

settlement.

Type Facilities/Services Included Key Service?

Transport

Rail Services (3, 2 & 1 peak services per

hour and all day) Y

Bus Services (3, 2 & 1 peak services per

hour and all day) Y

Education Primary School Y

Secondary School

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Employment Designated Business Areas

Health Doctors Surgery Y

Dentist

Retail Service

Providers

Post Office Y

Bank/Building Society

Superstore (over 2,500 sq. m. trading

floorspace selling food and non-food)

Supermarket (under 2,500 sq. m. trading

floorspace selling food and non-food)

Small Local Store Y

Other Shops & Services (e.g.

butchers/hairdressers)

Pubs/Takeaways/Restaurants/Tea

Rooms

Community Facilities

Community Hall Y

Permanent Library

Mobile Library

Place of Worship

Recycling Facilities

Recreation Ground including Cricket

Ground

Synthetic Turf Pitch

Children’s Play Area/Provision for Young

People

Major Indoor Sports & Leisure Facility

5.3.3 Below shows the total facility score for each individual settlement, taking into

account the criteria that has been outlined in paragraph 5.3.2. Each service

and facility has been given 1 point, or more if there are multiple of the same

facility. For example:

If the settlement has a single doctor’s surgery, it would score one

point;

If the settlement has three primary schools, then it would score three

points, one for each school;

Points for “other shops & facilities” are determined by the number of

units which are still in use, according to the District’s town and local

centre retail monitoring. This usually accounts for high scores in the

top tier settlements in the hierarchy calculations.

Settlements that have 4 or more key facilities have been identified in Table 2

(see below). This indicates the more sustainable locations which may be able

to support future development.

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Table 2: Settlements and Facilities Scores

Settlement Facility Score 4+ Key Services?

Sevenoaks Town 468 Y

Edenbridge (including Marlpitt Hill) 117 Y

Swanley 116 Y

Westerham 87 Y

New Ash Green 53 Y

Riverhead 51 Y

Otford 47 Y

Hartley 41 Y

West Kingsdown 28 Y

Brasted 26

South Darenth 26 Y

Seal 25 Y

Hextable 23 Y

Eynsford 22 Y

Dunton Green 21 Y

Kemsing 21 Y

Crockenhill 20 Y

Halstead 18 Y

Leigh 16

Sevenoaks Weald 15

Sundridge 15

Farningham 14

Four Elms 14

Knockholt 14 Y

Shoreham 13

Ide Hill 12 Hever 11

Penshurst 11

Chiddingstone 10

Fawkham 10

Horton Kirby 10

Chiddingstone Causeway 8

Chipstead 7

Badgers Mount 6

Cowden 6

Crockham Hill 6

Fordcombe 6

Underriver 6

Ash 5

Bessels Green 5

Hodsoll Street 5

Stone Street 5

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Mark Beech 4

Chevening 3

Chiddingstone Hoath 3

Knatts Valley 3

Swanley Village 3

Toys Hill 3

Well Hill 3

Bitchet Green 2

Bough Beech 2

Godden Green 2

Heaverham 2

Marsh Green 0 Pratts Bottom 0

5.4 Transport Links

5.4.1 Due to the proximity of London and other large employment centres, the

District has good transport connections, in particular with rail transport. There

are four rail lines that run through the District:

The London to Tonbridge mainline servicing Sevenoaks, Dunton Green

and Knockholt;

The Swanley to Maidstone East line servicing Kemsing, Otford,

Eynsford, Shoreham and Swanley;

The Tonbridge to Redhill (via Edenbridge) line which services Leigh,

Chiddingstone Causeway and Edenbridge; and

The Uckfield to London line servicing Cowden, Hever and Edenbridge.

5.4.2 Sevenoaks and Edenbridge have two stations available which offer different

services to different destinations. Sevenoaks Station and Bat & Ball station

both have services to London Terminals as does Edenbridge Town.

Edenbridge Station also has access to Gatwick Airport via services along the

Tonbridge to Redhill line. However there is no direct service between

Sevenoaks and Edenbridge.

5.4.3 While rail services are important to the District, there are a number of key

strategic roads within the District linking up settlements to the Kent strategic

road network. Important roads and highways include:

The A25 which runs across the central region of the District.

Settlements that rely on the A25 include Westerham, Sundridge,

Brasted, Riverhead, Sevenoaks Town and Seal.

The A224 and A225 run north to south through the District and are

used by settlements such as Sevenoaks Urban Area, Knockholt and

Halstead, as well as Otford, Enysford, and Farningham.

The A20 heading through Swanley to London.

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The District has the M25, M26 and M20 running through it which it a

key part national strategic road network.

5.4.4 The table below outlines the average number of rail services per hour at each

station only, both during peak and off-peak periods. The definition of peak and

off-peak services can vary, according to different train operators, and what

time they arrive at a particular destination. Therefore for the purposes of

clarity, “peak” and “off-peak” services have been defined as the following:

Peak – services that depart from a station between 07:00 and 10:00.

Off-peak – services that depart from a station after 10:00

Table 3: Settlements with Railway Stations and Service Frequency

Settlements with Rail Services Available Services Available per hour

Peak Off Peak Chiddingstone Causeway (Penshurst Station) 1 1 Cowden 2 1 Dunton Green 3 2 Edenbridge (Services to Redhill/Gatwick) 1 1 Edenbridge Town (Services to London) 2 1 Eynsford 2 2 Hartley (Longfield Station which is located out-of-District)

3 3

Hever 1 1 Kemsing 2 1 Knockholt 2 2 Leigh 2 1 Otford 3 2 Sevenoaks (Mainline services) 5 3 Sevenoaks (Metro services) 3 3 Sevenoaks (Services via Bat & Ball station) 2 2 Shoreham 2 2

Swanley 2 1

5.6 All factors described in this section are taken into account when preparing the final

Hierarchy. The final Settlement Hierarchy can be found in Table 4.

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Table 4: Final Settlement Hierarchy for Sevenoaks District

Settlement

Classification Settlement

Population

of

Settlement2

Combined

Population,

Services, Green

Belt &

Employment

Score

4+ Key

Sustainability

Services/Facilities?

Principal

Town

Sevenoaks Urban

Area (Sevenoaks Town

including Bessels

Green, Chipstead,

Dunton Green and

Riverhead)

29,218 587 Y

Towns

Swanley 16,112 135 Y

Edenbridge (including

Marlpitt Hill) 8,847 126 Y

Westerham 3,368 92 Y

Local Service

Centres

New Ash Green 5,941 59 Y

Otford 3,474 51 Y

Hartley 4,800 46 Y

Villages

West Kingsdown 4,667 33

South Darenth 2,130 30 Y

Hextable 4,044 28 Y

Seal 1,590 27

Brasted 878 27

Kemsing 4,073 26 Y

Eynsford 1,674 24 Y

Crockenhill 1,574 22 Y

Halstead 1,063 20 Y

Leigh 1,274 18

Farningham 1,204 16

Sevenoaks Weald 812 16

Sundridge 846 16

Knockholt (including

Knockholt Pound) 754 15 Y

Shoreham 804 14

Four Elms 602 14

Hamlets

Horton Kirby 1,002 12

Ide Hill 722 12

Penshurst 762 11

2 Figures are taken from the mid-2015 population projections from the Office of National Statistics (October16

2016). See paragraph 5.1.2 for further information on population methodology. An asterisk (*) denotes that there was insufficient data for the desired Output Area (OA).

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Hever 358 11

Fawkham 429 10

Chiddingstone * 10 Y

Chiddingstone

Causeway 418 8 Y

Badgers Mount 647 7

Cowden 517 6

Underriver 335 6

Crockham Hill 326 6

Fordcombe 309 6

Hodsoll Street 561 5

Ash 376 5

Stone Street 365 4

Mark Beech 311 3

Swanley Village 712 3

Chiddingstone Hoath 409 3

Toys Hill 316 3

Well Hill 278 3

Chevening 250 3

Knatts Valley 484 3

Bough Beech 437 2

Bitchet Green 305 2

Heaverham 255 2

Godden Green * 2

Marsh Green * 0

Pratts Bottom * 0

N.B. Settlements which have been underlined are washed over by the Green Belt. While

Badgers Mount has been classified as a Hamlet due to limited facilities and services, the

settlement has a defined Green Belt boundary.

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6. Settlement Profiles

6.1 Principal Town

Settlement: Sevenoaks Urban Area (Sevenoaks Town, Dunton Green, Riverhead, Chipstead

and Bessels Green)

The Sevenoaks Urban Area compromises Sevenoaks town, Riverhead, Dunton Green,

Chipstead and Bessels Green. The area has been designated as the District’s Principal

Town as it has the greatest population (29,218) and the greatest number of services

and facilities (overall score: 587).

6.2 Towns

Settlements: Swanley Edenbridge (including Marlpitt Hill) & Westerham

Swanley has the second largest population in the District with 16,112 residents. It is

also one the District’s major employment centres. Swanley has good rail and bus

connections to surrounding areas and central London, with retail provision focused

towards convenience facilities and services. Additionally, there are primary and

secondary schools within the town. This is reflected within the overall score (135).

Edenbridge is the third largest settlement within the Sevenoaks District, with 8,172

inhabitants. There are a good range of services and facilities (overall score: 126) that

are available for residents (including a Major Indoor Sports & Leisure Centre), yet it

lacks in providing a full range of services (i.e. a secondary school) or employment

opportunities.

Westerham is a designated a Town Centre and has a greater number of service and

facilities available to residents (overall score: 92) than the Local Service Centres.

6.4 Local Service Centre

Settlements: Hartley, New Ash Green, Otford

Local Service Centres do not offer as wide a range of services and facilities as Town

Centres. However, they do offer a proportionate range of services, facilities and

employment opportunities for the daily needs of the local community and

surrounding settlements.

6.5 Villages

Settlement: South Darenth, Hextable, Seal, Brasted, Kemsing, Eynsford, Crockenhill,

Halstead, Leigh, Farningham, Sevenoaks Weald, Knockholt, Sundridge,. Shoreham, Four

Elms,

These settlements are smaller than those further up the Hierarchy and offer fewer

services and facilities. However, many of these settlements have 4 or more “key

sustainability services/facilities”. In addition, they all have defined Greenbelt

boundaries (except Four Elms) which means that, within these boundaries, there are

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opportunities for potential small scale or minor development. This is reflective of the

total service scores for each settlement..

6.6 Hamlets

Settlement: Chiddingstone, Chiddingstone Causeway, Badgers Mount, Cowden, Underriver,

Crockham Hill, Fordcombe, Hodsoll Street, Ash, Stone Street, Mark Beech, Swanley Village,

Chiddingstone Hoath, Toys Hill Well Hill, Chevening, Knatts Valley, Bough Beech,

Heaverham, Godden Green, Marsh Green. Penshurst, Hever, Fawkham, Ide Hill, Horton

Kirby

These Hamlets have very small populations (fewer than 1,000 inhabitants) and have a

limited range of services and facilities). All the settlements in this classification are

washed over by Green Belt (excluding Badgers Mount). As such, it would be

unrealistic to expect these settlements to accommodate much new development.

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7. Conclusions

7.1 The District has a number of settlements all offering a different variety of services

and facilities to meet the day-to-day needs of the community. The settlements range

from towns to small hamlets spread across the District.