30 Jan 2026
Campaigners fighting against a pincer movement of housing developments which threaten the character of historic Sandridge village have highlighted major flaws in the applications.
The village, which dates back to Saxon times, is facing proposals for more than 100 new homes on Green Belt land to the east and west which could push hundreds of cars onto narrow country lanes unsuitable for these levels of traffic.
The first scheme, on an agricultural field behind The Green Man pub off Sandridgebury Lane, would be for 49 houses, while the other, on arable land owned by the Salvation Army behind Shottfield Close, is for a staggering 84 homes.
Campaign group Save Our Sandridge has been actively fighting the proposals, but desperately needs additional funds to support their efforts.
Spokesperson Laura Garner said: “We are at a stage in the campaign where we need to pay for independent specialist reports for both developments – firstly Highways, and next will be Ecology and Flood Risk. Initially we are looking at raising £5,000.
“Anyone that would like to donate can do so through our website saveoursandridge.uk. No matter how small, we appreciate every single donation that is made and all funds raised will go directly towards these reports. It is the individual efforts and contributions of many, that will make a difference.”
Campaign leaders say there has been a failure to identify protected species – namely skylarks – for the Shottfield development by taking HERC ( Hertfordshire Environmental Records Centre) data from the wrong dates and the extent of protected bats species is being called into question for both of the developments.
“The owners of the Green Man site are the dependents of a man who was local to the area for generations. The Shottfield site is owned by a charity. Save Our Sandridge are considering complaining to The Charity Commission about the failures in the application. Planning is a legal issue and charities must not flout the law or the ethics around the law.
“Over the last couple of months district councillors Juliet Voisey (Green Party), Simon Johns (Lib Dem) and the parish council have engaged with residents, with a number of objections being published on the portal.
“Local MP Victoria Collins visited the site and residents were able to conduct a walkaround and share their concerns. This was on a particularly rainy day, with flooding occurring on House Lane and Woodcock Hill after only a short few hours of heavy rainfall. The visit coincided with the chaos of school pick up and Victoria witnessed first-hand the parking, traffic and safety issues. Other district councillors have also visited the site and expressed their concerns.
“The realisation is spreading that the highly useful Sandridgebury Lane route to STAGS and other schools in the New Greens area is being threatened, which would cause even greater mayhem at the King Will and Ancient Briton junctions. Villagers are extremely concerned that we would be even more isolated and gridlocked.
“With fewer children in the village being allocated Sandringham School it means more parents having to drive children to school,
especially to STAGS and Townsend the latter being the only mixed school being offered, and that means Sandridgebury Lane,
which is already crowded.”
SoS has expressed its concerns about road safety and traffic levels around Shottfield Close, and is now trying to get an independent report completed to verify all measurements, figures and feasibility of the developers’ claims and highways conditions.
There are also concerns that many buildings on the development will be two and a half storeys high, which is not in keeping with the immediate area. The site is also being marketed on the website of local estate agent Cassidy and Tate, despite not having planning permission.
With regards to the Green Man site, concerns include the removal of part of an ancient hedgerow and the need for a thorough bat assessment.
An ecology report on the site has confirmed that the site is home to both protected species and Red List [a globally accepted methodology for assessing species extinction risk at global and regional (including national) scales] species. Vast amounts of the report has been redacted.
Meanwhile, fellow campaigner Rob White said planning documents on SADC’s website including photos showing the environmental impact of the schemes on surrounding rights-of-way are misleading.
“The choice of angles used to take the photos minimise the impact on the views. We think the developers could perhaps be trying to influence planning officers and councillors on the planning committee into believing the developments would only have a small impact on local views, when in fact the opposite is true.”
Harpenden MP Victoria Collins, whose constituency covers Sandridge, added: “I’ve spoken to many local people increasingly worried about the impact of development and what it means for traffic, public transport and already stretched public services.
“This Labour Government has continued to increase housing targets while taking powers away from local councils. This includes leaving local councils essentially powerless against speculative development or to push for infrastructure first. What’s more, the Government has given developers a green light with definitions like ‘grey belt’ which leaves our villages like Sandridge and Redbourn especially exposed. This will have real consequences for local people.
“That’s why since being elected, myself and Lib Dem colleagues have repeatedly pushed the Government on their national planning policy to give local councils, and importantly local communities more power.
“We must have more powers to deliver what’s needed locally, not from Whitehall. That includes the impact on local traffic and infrastructure. I will continue to question the Government at every opportunity.”
