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The Hermitage
Elsewhere in this newsletter there is an article about the new draft National Planning Policy Framework, (NPPF) basically warning residents of Taplow that implementation of this latest government initiative is unlikely to leave us unscathed. Until recently the South Bucks District Council has been largely supportive of the stand, via Ellington Road and District Residents Association (EDRA), of the many proposals to demolish the Hermitage and replace it with a concentrated development of houses or apartment blocks. Over the past 30 years EDRA has fought off at least 25-30 separate applications to develop the site, and the fact that the Hermitage is still standing is a tribute to the combined local determination to save the building and to the firm support of SBDC. We cannot avoid the charge of self-interest, however, since clearly the destruction of the Hermitage would possibly include the demolition of No. 5 Ellington Gardens and a concomitant massive loss of tree cover and a major loss of privacy and amenity. The Hermitage is surrounded by a ring of 30 individual houses and some 54 flats, a total of at least 84 households whose well-being will be immediately affected by loss of that grand old house. The NPPF poses a serious threat to both the village and the riverside in that infilling is likely to be allowed in a conservation area and, although technically the development of the Hermitage site is backland infill, the general loosening of regulations and the presumption in favour of sustainable development may well encourage the developer who owns the Hermitage to stir, Kraken-like, and once more terrorise the natives. EDRA will, as always, be keeping a very close watch on the situation and will work in close collaboration with the Society. Fred Russell
