Suburban expansion is another category Medway is considering for potential growth. The Reg.18 Local Plan states that there is the potential for 9,691 homes for suburban expansion. Our assessment has indicated that this spatial strategy has the highest likelihood of achieving closer to the homes indicated. However, those sites between Grange and Lower Rainham have a number of issues to overcome, including impact on the character and appearance of the surrounding area including Gillingham Riverside Area of Local Landscape Importance, loss of high-grade quality agricultural land and overall impact on the local highway network. An appeal decision for the Land off Pump Lane confirms this, where an application for up to 1,250 units, local centre, village green, primary school, care facility and care home were dismissed by the Secretary of State on these grounds.

Furthermore, a number of these sites represent large scale strategic delivery, which could push the majority of housing from this form of growth past the first five years of the Plan period. It is therefore considered that a more realistic headline of 7,600 dwellings can be achieved through suburban expansion, which is 2,080 homes less than identified in the Reg. 18 Plan.