This page aims to provide background information and sign-posting to relevant planning information for the current Growing Baldock outline planning application Ref. 25/02571/OP, submitted by Urban & Civic Baldock North Ltd and Hertfordshire County Council, received by the Council on 8 October 2025.
This application will be subject to statutory consultation and we welcome your comments; please submit your consultation response via the Council’s Public Access Library (details provided further down below), or via planning.control@north-herts.gov.uk, quoting the application reference.
Strategic background
The North Hertfordshire Local Plan 2011-2031 allocated sites BA1, BA2, BA3 and BA10 for redevelopment that together form major parts of the “Growing Baldock” development, thereby establishing the principle of development. The specific policy requirements are contained within Policies BA1, BA2, BA3, BA10.
Subsequently, Urban & Civic as the development’s delivery partner and Hertfordshire County Council as the majority landowner, worked with the Council, the County’s service departments and other stakeholders including local residents to create a Strategic Masterplan (SMP) for the development. Its main purpose is to provide a high level land use framework with an illustrative site layout that demonstrates how the policy requirements of the Local Plan may be implemented, establishing bespoke principles for the redevelopment of the land. This process culminated in Full Council’s approval of the Growing Baldock Strategic Masterplan on 16 June 2025.
Formal planning application
The Local Plan and SMP form the local planning policy and strategic framework, against which subsequent planning applications for the development site should be assessed. With this framework in place, the next step of the planning process is the development management stage. This will consist of multiple phased applications that start off with an application in outline. Applications after that will seek approval for information relating to phases of the development, as well as reserved matters approval for parcels and infrastructure.
A pre-application process has been undertaken by the applicant with stakeholders, at which multiple topics have been discussed. The applicant also undertook a public consultation event. This has enabled the preparation of the current major planning application.
This current application is an Outline Planning Application with all matters reserved apart from Access. This means that approval is sought for a first tier of information that would confirm the land use parameters for the site layout, quantum of development, development and design principles and a range of measures to mitigate any significant negative effects. The outline planning application stage also seeks to confirm the necessary information for subsequent applications and submissions to ensure that a full assessment of the final detail of the development can be made.
The following provides a summary of the application details and a brief guide to the submitted documentation in order to familiarise readers with the general structure of the application. The information has been published on the Council’s Public Access Library under Ref. 25/02571/OP, at: https://pa2.north-herts.gov.uk/online-applications
The first task after the application’s registration and validation by the Council, is a round of public consultation. The application’s status will be highlighted on the application’s section on the Public Access Library, alongside other relevant information.
For any further information please email planning.control@north-herts.gov.uk.
Application site
BA1(Land East Of North Rd And North Of Railway Line); BA10(Land Between Railway Line And Royston Rd; BA3 (Land West Of A505); BA2 (Land South Of Clothall Rd); Walls Field; Urban Open Land West Of A505, And Land West Of North Rd, Baldock.
Description
Growing Baldock Development Site: Outline planning application with all matters reserved except for means of highway access into the development from the A505/Royston Road, North Road and Clothall Road for: up to 3,200 homes, up to 16ha of employment, waste and leisure infrastructure, a mixed use local centre, up to 1 secondary school, up to 2 x primary schools, up to 1 SEND school, health hub, green infrastructure (including parks, formal sports provision, play, habitat areas, informal open space and structural planting), internal street network, access junctions and railway crossing, public transport infrastructure, pedestrian/cycle network (including PRoW diversions, active travel routes, mobility hubs and crossing of the railway), utilities and drainage infrastructure (including diversions of existing and provision of new infrastructure, pumping stations, sustainable drainage, primary substations, rising main/strategic sewer and renewable energy infrastructure), ground remodelling/earthworks and any necessary demolitions.
(note: the submitted Development Specification document provides more details)
Index of application documentation
The application documentation submitted as at 21 October 2025 is as follows.
Formal documentation
- Application form
- Notices
- Application fee
- Covering letter
- Development Specification
Application plans
- Site Location Plan
- Parameter Plan
- Detailed Design Access Plan – North Road Junction(s) (vehicular and bus only)
- Detailed Design Access Plan – A505/Royston Road Junction
- Detailed Design Access Plan – Clothall Road Junction
Supporting reports
- Planning Statement (including Town Centre Assessment, Stewardship Statement, Affordable Housing Statement and draft S106 Heads of Terms)
- Design & Access Statement
- Green Infrastructure Strategy (including Open Space Assessment)
- Sustainability and Energy Strategy
- Biodiversity Net Gain Assessment and Metric
- Employment Strategy
- Tree Survey and Arboricultural Planning Statement
- Statement of Community Involvement
- Outline Construction Environmental Management Plan
- Transport Assessment*
- Framework Travel Plan*
- Ecological Mitigation Plan (including Habitat Management Plan)*
- Noise Impact Assessment*
- Heritage Impact Assessment*
- Flood Risk Assessment*
- Drainage Strategy*
Documents marked with an * are both provided as standalone reports and they are appended to relevant chapters of the Environmental Statement
Environmental statement
- Main Chapters
- Chapter 1: Introduction
- Chapter 2: Proposed Development
- Chapter 3: Policy Context
- Chapter 4: Transport
- Chapter 5: Noise & Vibration
- Chapter 6: Air Quality
- Chapter 7: Landscape & Visual Impact
- Chapter 8: Built Heritage
- Chapter 9: Archaeology
- Chapter 10: Hydrology & Flooding
- Chapter 11: Ecology
- Chapter 12: Ground Conditions
- Chapter 13: Socio-Economics & Health
- Chapter 14: Waste
- Chapter 15: Lighting
- Chapter 16: Utilities
- Chapter 17: Climate Change
- Chapter 18: Conclusions
- Figures and Appendices
- Non-Technical Summary
Apart from an overview of the information in the submitted cover letter, Urban & Civic have also produced a guide to the application, which you can view here: Home - Growing Baldock.