PLANNING

MOSA through its Trustees own the verges to most of the roads within the Area of Special Character except for those along Middleton Road and Sea Lane. Ownership and maintenance obligations are set out both within individual property deeds and the within the MOSA website.

 

Given the range of style and scale of properties constructed throughout the Area, it is not surprising that there is no uniformity in access arrangements, with some properties having a single access, some with “in-out” driveways and some with separate vehicular and pedestrian accesses.

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Please contact the Secretary for a copy of the Driveway Widening Policy.

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Driveway Widening

Over the years, with an increase in household car ownership and a general requirement for larger driveways and wider openings onto the roadway, residents have frequently sought to revise their access arrangements. Where this has affected MOSA’s landholdings MOSA have generally sought to minimise the loss of verge and refuse the creation of second accesses. 

 

Whilst today most properties have driveway widths of 3.0m - 3.5m, this varies throughout the Estate and recently there have been a number of requests for increases to 4.0m+ particularly within Sea Way and Old Point where many of the properties are being redeveloped or substantially extended. It does of course need to be remembered that the type and size of boundary enclosures and gates is for the owner and planning system to determine, having regard to the Village Design Statement. MOSA’s direct control lies only in its ability to authorise or refuse a right of access over its landholdings (verges).

 

Where increases in driveway widths are requested and approved they will be addressed by way of a formal legal Agreement (“Deed of Grant”) between the property owner and MOSA (entered into at the owners expense). 

 

Therefore, in the interests of clarity, MOSA has formally set out its position in its Driveway Widening Policy, thereby ensuring consistency and transparency. However, MOSA recognises that a degree of flexibility may sometimes be necessary to address particular circumstances.

 

Environmental Issues

Climate change and drainage is fast becoming a key consideration for the local area and as such the loss of soakaway capacity needs to be minimised and wherever practical increased. Guidance on such issues is already set out within the planning section of the website. As such it is important that MOSA act responsibly and sustainably when considering requests for driveway width modifications or enforcing its landownership rights.

 

MOSA also needs to be mindful of health and safety implications of accesses across its landholdings as well as the visual impact on the street scene and Area of Special Character, particularly where tall gates and walls are being proposed.

 

Where any new or improved driveways/accesses to properties are created, a physical boundary must be installed and maintained to delineate the boundary between the property boundary and the MOSA verge. Again were these are approved they will be addressed by way of a formal legal Agreement (“Deed of Grant”) between the property owner and MOSA (entered into at the owners expense). 

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Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems' (SUDS) Regulations

In October 2008 the Government took steps to address future flooding issues and domestic driveways became regulated under the constraints of the 'Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems' (SUDS) Regulations. SUDS relate to how the surface water created by your driveway is managed and the regulations are not there to specify which materials your driveway should be surfaced with. Simply put the driveway should be cambered to allow water to run within the boundaries of the property into lawns, borders or collected by a surface channel and drained into a basic soak-away.

 

Planning permission is not normally required if a new or replacement driveway of any size uses permeable (or porous) surfacing, such as gravel, permeable concrete block paving or porous asphalt, or if the rainwater is directed to a lawn, border or soak-away to drain naturally.

 

Residents will however need planning permission if the surface to be covered is more than five square metre and you are laying traditional, impermeable driveways that do not provide for the water to run to a permeable area.

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​For further guidance on the planning regulations please see 'Permeable surfacing of front gardens guidance' on the Government website.

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Please note it does not apply to any driveway built, modified or repaired before October 2008.

 

For reference MOSA maintains a photographic record of all the present configurations.  As already stated, please contact your Road Representative in the first instance, when considering making any alteration.