5.8.1 Honington is a village located approximately 13 kilometres from Bury St Edmunds and 10 kilometres from Thetford. It has a population of 1,413 (2018 mid-year estimate). Facilities include a primary school and a pub. RAF Honington is situated approximately two kilometres to the west of the village and facilities available off base include a post office and stores, hairdresser, Chinese take-away and fish and chip shop.

5.8.2 The River Blackbourn separates the village of Honington from the hamlet of Sapiston. Much of the farmland in the area is part of the Duke of Grafton’s estate, and Euston Hall is approximately three kilometres to the north of the village. There is a conservation area that includes most of Honington village, and there are a number of listed buildings within the two settlement boundaries.

Constraints and opportunities

• The conservation area which covers much of Honington village must be considered when assessing opportunities for new development in order to protect the setting of the village.
• Flood Zones 2 and 3 along the River Blackbourn lie between eastern Honington and western Sapiston.
• The area is within the 7500m Special Protection Area Buffer Zone.
• The settlements are within the Ministry of Defence (MOD) safeguarding area.
• Honington is located on the A1088 which provides a good road link to Thetford. There is a fair bus service to Bury St Edmunds and Thetford, but not at times that make bus travel an option for commuting.

Settlement status

5.8.3 Honington and Sapiston is designated as an infill village in the current local plan where normally only small scale infill development of five homes would be allowed within the settlement boundary. The good range of services warrants its categorisation as a Type A village in the new West Suffolk settlement hierarchy. This would mean that the opportunity for allocating small sites in or adjacent to the village could be explored through the preparation of the local plan.

Site options

5.8.4 A number of sites in the area have been submitted to the council by landowners and developers for potential inclusion in the local plan, but they have all been deferred for suitability reasons. These sites are listed in the SHELAA and can be seen on Find My Nearest.

5.8.5 Due to the environmental constraints, it is likely that the only options for development to come forward in the future will be within the settlement boundary. If you know of any sites for redevelopment in this area, please let us know via the call for sites submission form.

5.8.6 Your comments will help in drawing up the next draft of the West Suffolk Local Plan which will be consulted on in 2021. This will set out the council’s preferred options for the distribution of housing and other land uses across the district. The council will also consult on the preferred sites across the district to achieve this distribution.

Honington and Sapiston settlement constraints map