24 Mar 2026
Questions still remain unanswered about key aspects of controversial plans to build 150 homes on Green Belt land to the north of St Albans.
The scheme, by Cala Homes, is for land to the rear of 112-156B Harpenden Road, and will provide a residential development plus associated garages, parking, landscaping, open space and vehicular and pedestrian routes through the site.
But campaigners claim there are still too many uncertainties surrounding the scheme, which is currently one of several projects included in St Albans’ draft Local Plan, the development blueprint currently under consideration by independent inspectors.
Campaign group Save North St Albans Green Belt, previously known as CLASH, has highlighted key issues surrounding the scheme which they say have not been clarified.
Spokesperson Gee Smedley said: “We have raised serious concerns about what we see as ‘misleading’ statements made during the Local Plan examination about the deliverability of highways and active travel infrastructure linked to proposed large scale development in North St Albans.
“At the heart of our concerns is planning application 5/2021/0423, an outline consent relied upon as evidence that transport infrastructure can support the larger North St Albans strategic allocation. That application has a condition related to delivering sustainable transport options, in this case a cycle lane.
“In particular, we dispute claims made about a Section 278 highways agreement said to secure the cycle lane, also known as the active travel route. This is an agreement where a developer pays a council to deliver highways works arising from new development.
“Why is a cycle lane so important? The council and developers have consistently relied on highways modelling that aims to mitigate the huge increase in cars from the 1,125 extra properties, with the assertions that a high percentage will cycle, including those already commuting through the area by car. Without this, the application would been deemed unsustainable and against policy, so would have to be refused.
“At consultations in 2024, representatives of Cala Homes and DLA Planning told local residents that a Section 278 agreement would deliver the active travel route from the development entrance on Harpenden Road to the Ancient Briton junction.
“Similar assurances were given during Local Plan hearings on October 23 by representatives of landowners, St Albans School and Hallam Land Management, when concerns were raised about whether the scheme was genuinely deliverable in a sustainable way.
“However, after almost a year of trying to obtain details, via a Freedom of Information request, we finally secured a copy of the Section 278 agreement and it tells a very different story. The agreement, relates only to remodelling a slip road near the site entrance and does not cover the main active travel route required for the wider North St Albans development. If there is another agreement, it was not disclosed in the Freedom Information request as it should have been.
“We believe that planning inspectors may therefore have been misled during the hearings. While acknowledging that developers’ representatives may not have done so intentionally, we contend that the council has failed to correct the record, despite being aware of the true scope of the existing Section 278 agreements.
“This is not a minor technicality, the deliverability of highways and active travel schemes has been a long-running and fundamental concern. Yet misleading matters of evidence and statements continue to appear in the Local Plan process.
“We have also challenged claims made during the hearings that the Highways Authority had no objection to the large-scale development proposals. In a letter dated October 7, Hertfordshire County Council Highways Authority stated, that while there was no objection ‘at this stage’, several issues still required resolution. The letter also clarifies that most off-site highway measures would be delivered by developers directly, with the council only delivering improvements closer to the city centre.
“We have made it clear to the council and planning inspectors, which comments made during the hearings are misleading and reject assertions that appropriate legal mechanisms and approvals were already in place.
“Frustration among residents continues and it feels like a ‘smoke and mirrors’ approach to the development because inaccuracies have persisted despite repeated opportunities for clarification during the examination.
“With the main modifications consultation to the Local Plan expected imminently, we have asked when and how residents can challenge what we see as fabrications. Once adopted, the Local Plan will carry significant weight in future planning decisions.”
We asked SADC to answer the following questions:
1. Is there a Section 278 agreement in place to deliver off-site travel routes (namely cycle lanes) on the site of the proposed Cala Homes development in north St Albans? (application 5/2021/0423)
2. If not, why did SADC’s representatives not clarify this during the recent Local Plan hearings? If yes, where is it and what are the details?)
3. What discussions are taking place between SADC and the Highways Authority (HCC) to ensure this development meets the required highways changes and delivers on promises for sustainable transport?
4. Are SADC’s representatives risking the whole Local Plan being thrown out if it is found to contain flawed information which has not been corrected when the opportunity arose?
5. It has been claimed by representatives of the developers that HCC has no objections to the granting of planning permission, when in fact this is inaccurate in that they do not have objections at this stage: “There are still several areas that require further discussion to resolve specific issues, but at this stage in the process we have not found reasons to object to the proposal.” (James Dale, DM Area Manager, Highways). Will SADC clarify these points going forwards?
The council refused to answer any of these questions while the Local Plan inspections are continuing.
We also approached Cala Homes with similar questions relating to the site.
We wanted to know if there a Section 278 agreement in place to deliver off-site travel routes – namely cycle lanes – on the site.
It has also been claimed by representatives of the developers that HCC has no objections to the granting of planning permission, which is contradicted by the statement above from Herts Highways.
The idea behind asking was to clarify Cala’s position on these two issues, and give them an opportunity to explain further.
Their spokesperson said: “There are two separate S278 applications in place for the site, the first is a minor application for the site access bellmouth and slip road remodeling works which has been approved by Hertfordshire County Council’s Highways department. A second application was made for the wider improvement works including the off-site cycle facilities.
“As per the committee reports for both the outline and reserved matters planning applications that led to the approval of both applications, there were no objections from any department within Hertfordshire County Council.”
But Cala would not reveal the details of the second S278. The spokesperson added: “We were pleased to receive Reserved Matters approval from St Albans City and District Council in September 2025 for 124 new, high-quality homes on Harpenden Road.
“We will, of course, be clearing all planning conditions in accordance with the approval, and look forward to starting work on site in due course.”
