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Grimsby West Urban Extension

About this page

Welcome to our dedicated web page for the Grimsby West Urban Extension Project. Whilst the Grimsby West Urban Extension is in its very early stages of development, interest is already really strong.

We are pleased to note the levels of feedback the scheme already generating, and will continue to take residents’ thoughts on board as plans progress. The Grimsby West Urban Extension comprises of two separate developments under one umbrella project:

  1. The privately-led homes development of 3,500 family, starter, affordable and older people’s housing with a country park, and associated facilities including a school and extensive areas of open space.
  2. A new 40mph strategic link road, 3.3km in length linking the A46 to the A1136.

Feedback so far

The project remains in its very early stages. The Council submitted a funding bid to central Government for the link road in 2021. This was unsuccessful.

The Strategic Link Road remians a high priority piece of infrastructure for the Council and this will continue to be pursued.

Frequently asked questions

Thank you for your interest in the Grimsby West project. These questions and answers give you the information about the project and provide context and background about the proposals.

What is Grimsby West?

Grimsby West is a strategic development site allocated in North East Lincolnshire Council’s Local Plan. It is proposed to become a new community with around 3,500 homes, built by private housing developers, set around a new country park. Residents will have access to a new primary / secondary school and local centres and other areas of extensive open space. A new section of strategic highway will also link the A46 near Morrisons roundabout and the A1136 junction on the A180.

North East Lincolnshire Council is working in collaboration with the landowners who are developing a Masterplan for the whole site. The proposals for the strategic link road will form a part of the Masterplan, but they are being developed by the Council’s highways team, which is leading on this specific part of the project.

Where is Grimsby West?

The site stretches from the A46 to the west of Morrisons, through to the A1136 west of Wybers Wood. Any drawings in the public domain are illustrative only. Detailed drawings and plans will be released as part of future consultation.

When was this established?

The proposals were first put forward as part of the Council’s call for sites which is an integral part of the preparation works for the Local Plan. The Local Plan was formally adopted in 2018.

Why this location?

Much of North East Lincolnshire’s business and industrial growth is planned to occur on the South Humber Bank with the development of new and expansion of existing facilities/premises. Grimsby West is well located to provide employees with convenient and sustainable access to their places of work.

The development of a site of this scale allows for the integrated delivery of supporting infrastructure, rather than placing pressure on existing facilities in neighbouring communities.

Were alternative sites considered?

As part of the Local Plan process, the Council was required to consider options for where and how growth might best be located. The inclusion of large-scale strategic sites is an important part of the Council’s housing allocation mix. These sites reduce the development pressure on other land between villages and other suburban areas, where it is important to retain a sense of separation and avoid settlements merging into one another. Their scale means infrastructure and local facilities needed to sustain mixed communities can be delivered comprehensively.

A range of sites were assessed as part of the allocation process and that work is evidenced in the Site Selection Reports and the Sustainability Appraisal prepared for the Local Plan. Scartho Top (which is under construction) and land to the west of Humberston Road in Grimsby are also allocated as strategic sites for large-scale new communities.

What is the importance of the Local Plan?

The Local Plan sets out the Council’s vision and strategy for development, including why, where, and how the use of land across the borough will change. The plan is ambitious and prepares for significant growth, setting out how North East Lincolnshire can become a sustainable location in which people live, work and enjoy recreation – both now and in the future.

What consultation took place?

The Local Plan was consulted on extensively from 2012 through each stage of its development, leading to Full Council adoption of the Plan in 2018. Activities and events were well-publicised as part of a consultation campaign which included online forums, meetings with stakeholders and statutory bodies, along with various public events.

What is the status of the Local Plan, and why does it exist?

Each council is required by law to produce a Development Plan. The North East Lincolnshire Local Plan (the Development Plan) was adopted by the Council, with support across all political parties at the time of its adoption, in 2018. It was the culmination of five years’ work, including several public consultations and over a year of public examination led by an independent planning inspector.

The Local Plan provides the statutory framework for planning decisions in the borough. Planning law requires planning applications to be determined in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise.

Can I still object to the allocation of Grimsby West?

The Local Plan is adopted, and the allocation of the Grimsby West site means the principle of it being developed has been agreed. There is no opportunity to challenge the Local Plan now as that timeframe has passed (an application to the high court to challenge the Plan’s content or the process of its preparation ended six weeks after adoption).

Can I influence the proposals now?

Whilst there is no formal consultation process underway at the moment, sharing information with the public, gathering insights and listening to feedback will be a very important part of the process of developing and refining the proposals for the site. However this will only take place once funding options for the scheme become clearer.

What consultation will take place in future?

If the scheme goes ahead, there will be several stages of engagement and consultation on the proposals before any construction is able to start  on the site. As the specific details of the Masterplan continue to develop consultation events and activities will take place. Once the Masterplan is finalised and is adopted by the Council, consultation will take place on all planning applications that come forward.

Who would be consulted?

Consultation will take place with members of the public as well as statutory bodies such as Highways England, Natural England and Historic England. Local stakeholders will be closely engaged, including nearby businesses and residents.

How can I register my comments?

We are not receiving comments about this scheme at the moment. If you would like to have your email address registered on an internal database for the purposes of an update as and when there is any further information, please send a request to [email protected].

What is the Masterplan?

Planning policy within the Local Plan requires a Masterplan for the Grimsby West site to be prepared and agreed with the Council before planning applications for development on the site can be determined.

The Masterplan will set out the framework for the site’s development. It will consider the whole of the site, including its relationship with the new strategic link road, and will identify all the necessary infrastructure requirements to support a sustainable new community. It builds on the technical work undertaken by the landowners during the preparation of the Local Plan and the preliminary masterplan concept developed at that time. It also responds to more recent survey and investigative work. It is not a planning application, however, it will inform the detailed design of schemes on the site and all planning applications will be assessed for their compliance with the Masterplan.

The Masterplan will not provide detailed designs of each new street or each new home. Rather, it will set out a range of key principles and map out the approach to matters such as:

  • Land use (broadly, where the new homes, new school, new facilities will be located);
  • Sustainable movement (how will people be able to move through the site by means other than the car);
  • Placemaking (how should buildings, streets and open spaces look, feel and function at different parts of the site)
  • Sustainability and energy use;
  • Heritage;
  • Ecology;
  • Public Rights of Way
  • Health and wellbeing; and,
  • Green and blue infrastructure (for example: the location of the country park and other green spaces, how net gain in biodiversity will be achieved, and how surface water be managed on the site).

The list above is not exhaustive, and the masterplan will cover several other aspects related to infrastructure and phasing of the development.

Who is responsible for producing the Masterplan?

The landowners have commissioned master planning consultants to produce a draft masterplan. This work is happening alongside the Council’s work developing the proposals for the strategic link road, which will feed into the masterplan.

The Council’s role in this master planning process is to make sure that proposals are compliant with planning policy and that they deliver the objectives and requirements specified in the Local Plan. Once finalised, the draft masterplan will be taken to the Council’s Cabinet for its approval and adoption.    

What can I influence as part of consultation on the Masterplan?

The preparation of the Masterplan is being informed by technical assessments which will influence how the site can (and cannot) be developed. Once completed, this information will shape the next draft of the Masterplan which will be subject to wider consultation. Comments will be welcomed on all aspects of the proposals, recognising that local knowledge and insight is very valuable. All feedback received from the public and other stakeholders will be analysed and considered against the technical data to inform the next iteration of the Masterplan.

What can I influence as part of consultation on any planning application?

When a scheme progresses to the planning application stage, many of the general principles and requirements will have been set at the Masterplan stage. Planning applications will consider the finer detail of proposals, and some will be supported by additional technical information related to matters such as drainage, transport, and ecology. In some cases, an application will require an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). All documents submitted with the application will be available to view and consultation will take place in accordance with statutory requirements for planning applications. All written comments will be duly considered as part of the decision-making process. 

What did the LUF Bid include?

In 2021, the Council prepared and submitted a funding application to the government’s Levelling Up Fund (LUF) for grant funding for £36 million for the Grimsby West strategic link road as well as other measures to improve access to the South Humber Bank, in all some £50 million. This bid was unsuccessful.

Can I read the LUF bid?

You can read the details in our Levelling Up Fund Bid (PDF, 379KB) document.

What will happen now?

Background work to support the strategic link road scheme will likely continue to be developed and wait for future funding opportunities for funding to come forward to enable it. The Council may take steps to improve its chances of success with future applications.

Can the strategic link be built without external funding?

This is considered unlikely due to the cost.

How long might it take before the development is fully built?

The housing site will be completed in phases which will take many years to complete. Current projections estimate this is likely to take over 20 years to finish building all the houses and supporting elements.

What information will be on the Council’s planning portal?

The planning portal will host a range of information for the planning applications which will be submitted for both the highways and housing proposals. This will include environmental information such as ecology, air quality, archaeology, transportation, drainage and construction, among others. It will host all statutory consultation responses, and any online objections.

Where can I find further information about plans?

At the moment, a wealth of information regarding the need for growth and proposed locations are available online on the Council’s Local Plan pages.

What evidence is there for the need for the link road?

High level appraisals have been undertaken which have considered the overall traffic impact of the Local Plan.

Is there flexibility on the route of the link road?

The Local Plan allocation is quite clear about the parameters that the safeguarded strategic highway link can follow. However, this does come with some flexibility about how it connects the stated points between A46 and A1136/A180, and how the route aligns in between these points.

When will works start on site?

No works will start on site without the Masterplan being adopted by the Council and planning consent granted by the relevant formal body.

News posts

Grimsby West

Grimsby West LUF: update

THE leader of North East Lincolnshire Council has today expressed ‘disappointment’ at the news that a multi-million-pound Government Levelling Up Fund, (LUF), bid for major highways projects has been unsuccessful in this round. The near £50m bid was submitted for the first round of LUF funding earlier this year, but it was not listed as…

General Grimsby West

Time-sensitive preliminary survey work planned for Local Plan site

NORTH East Lincolnshire Council has announced that work will be taking place on a number of time-sensitive preliminary surveys on a site earmarked in the local plan for a housing and link road development. The essential survey works are needed for fact finding and preparation only at this stage. Assurance has been given that this…

General Grimsby West

Grimsby Western Strategic Link Road takes a step forward

North East Lincolnshire’s Cabinet have approved the next stage of plans to unlock the next stage of the Grimsby West Strategic Link Road – a key project in the council’s ambition to improve sustainable transport options, and reduce congestion, journey times and vehicle emissions across the borough. Later this month, the Council will apply to…

Contact details

Email: [email protected]

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