ALC of potential development sites in Maidstone Borough

In order to assist with the allocation of land for housing and employment and to meet the requirements of paragraph 112 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), Maidstone Borough Council needed to assess the impact on “best and most versatile land” of a number of potential development sites that were being promoted for inclusion in the local plan.

Having successfully demonstrated our considerable expertise and experience in this type of work, Land Research Associates was awarded the contract to survey 65 potential development sites across 19 parishes within the borough. The work involved:

• Liaising with landowners or their agents to gain survey access
• Undertaking a soil and agricultural land quality survey of each site to identify the grade(s) of agricultural land in accordance with current guidance
• Producing written reports of the findings for each site, and electronic print-ready A3 size maps of individual settlements showing the sites surveyed and their agricultural land quality 

LRA’s in-house MapInfo GIS capability not only ensured that high quality maps were produced for the project but also facilitated electronic exchange with the Council’s own GIS. The project was delivered to time and budget.

LRA are experts in agricultural land classification. If you have a similar project you wish to discuss, or have a related enquiry, please contact Mike Palmer on +44 (0)1509 670570 or mike.palmer@lra.co.uk