Local Plans and Plan Making

What is PAS ? PAS is a DCLG grant-funded programme but part of the Local Government Association Governed by a ‘sector led’ board 11 staff – commissioners, generalists, support “PAS exists to provide support to local planning authorities to provide efficient and effective planning services, to drive improvement in those services and to respond to and deliver changes in the planning system”

Objectives To introduce you to the key components of plan-making the issues that need to be addressed in order to help your planning authority get a robust plan in place as soon as possible your role in the process

This presentation will cover Plan making policy context The role of your local plan Developing a sound plan Key policy issues Viability Engagement Examinations A councillors role

Why good plan-making matters Having a robust Local Plan in place helps to: Move from plan-making to place-shaping; Provide certainty for communities and developers; Focus council on delivery; Access more funding and attract investment; Manage conflict!

national policy National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) National Policy Statements G&T policy Planning Practice Guidance local policy development plan neighbourhood policies neighbourhood plans Planning in England is policy-led

NPPF and planning The NPPF explicitly states planning’s principal role as being to help achieve sustainable development “At the heart of the National Planning Policy Framework is a presumption in favour of sustainable development, which should be seen as a golden thread running through both plan making and decision taking”

Key principles of the NPPF Local plans should: “meet objectively assessed needs, with sufficient flexibility to adapt to rapid change” NPPF

Unless…. “…any adverse impacts of allowing development would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits, when assessed against the policies in the Framework taken as a whole” NPPF Remember – still a presumption in favour of the plan

Duty to Cooperate Introduced by Localism Act New tool for delivering strategic planning at local level Requires councils and public bodies to engage constructively, actively and on an ongoing basis in relation to planning for strategic issues work collaboratively to ensure that strategic priorities across local authority boundaries are properly coordinated and clearly reflected in individual Local Plans

Complying with the Duty “The Government expects joint working on areas of common interest to be diligently undertaken for the mutual benefit of neighbouring authorities” NPPF “Cooperation should be a continuous process of engagement from initial thinking through to implementation, resulting in a final position where plans are in place to provide the land and infrastructure necessary to support current and projected future levels of development” NPPF

Local Plans “Local Plans are the key to delivering sustainable development that reflects the vision and aspirations of local communities. Planning decisions must be taken in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise” National Planning Policy Framework

Neighbourhood planning Localism Act introduced new right for communities to draw up neighbourhood plans “Neighbourhood plans must be in general conformity with the strategic policies of the Local Plan. To facilitate this, local planning authorities should set out clearly their strategic policies for the area and ensure that an up-to-date Local Plan is in place as quickly as possible” NPPF

Local plans set out a vision and a framework for the future development of the area guide decisions about individual development proposals the starting-point for considering whether applications can be approved

Implications / risks of not having an up-to-date Local Plan in place Difficult to defend inappropriate development Priority in favour of ‘sustainable development’ Increased ‘planning by appeal’ likely

Developing a sound plan Address the key priorities for the area Plan positively Develop a robust and credible evidence base Co-operate with neighbouring areas Focus on reasonable alternatives Undertake comprehensive Sustainability Appraisal Stakeholder engagement Viable and deliverable in practice

The role of Members You have a vital leadership role to play to produce a robust Local Plan for your area that has buy in from all parties Key challenge is to listen to the views and aspirations of your constituents and balance this with the professional advice of your planning staff in order to plan for, and meet, the development needs of your area

The Local Plan Local Plan Supplementary Planning Documents Annual Monitoring Report Proposals Map Site Specific Allocations Core Strategy Local Development Scheme Statement of Community Involvement Area Action Plans Sustainability Appraisal

What should the plan contain?

Robust and credible evidence base “Each local planning authority should ensure that the Local Plan is based on adequate, up- to-date and relevant evidence about the economic, social and environmental characteristics and prospects of the area” NPPF

Evidence base (examples) Strategic Housing Needs Assessment (SHMA) Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) Authority Monitoring Report Five Year Land Supply Assessment Affordable Housing Economic Viability Assessment Employment land review Transport Assessments Retail assessment Renewable and Low Carbon Energy Study Strategic Flood Risk Assessment Landscape and Settlement Character Assessment Green Belt Review

Prioritising evidence gathering “Wherever possible the local planning authority should consider how the preparation of any assessment will contribute to the plan’s evidence base” NPPF

Meeting housing need “LPAs should use their evidence base to ensure that their Local Plan meets the full, objectively assessed needs for market and affordable housing in the housing market area” NPPF Source:

Objectively Assessed Need the LPA is responsible for identifying the housing requirement for its area, as part of the wider Housing Market Area through its Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA) the plan sets out the level of provision to be made and requirement and provision must be rooted in evidence the provision made in the plan can be less than the identified requirement, but the planning authority will have to provide substantive justification for this approach

SHLAA The Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) should be the key document to demonstrate the deliverability of the housing strategy in the plan, it should: –Identify the availability of sites with potential for housing –Assess their suitability for housing –Assess likely economic viability of land to meet identified housing need

5 year housing land supply LPAs must identify and keep up-to-date a deliverable five year housing land supply in the absence of a plan and / or a five year supply, the Council is prone to predatory planning applications the presumption in favour of sustainable development is at the heart of the Framework, it means permission should be granted unless any adverse impacts would significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits

Green Belt Local planning authorities with Green Belts in their area should establish Green Belt boundaries in their Local Plans which set the framework for Green Belt and settlement policy. Once established, Green Belt boundaries should only be altered in exceptional circumstances, through the preparation or review of the Local Plan. At that time, authorities should consider the Green Belt boundaries having regard to their intended permanence in the long term, so that they should be capable of enduring beyond the plan period.” NPPF 2012 Current extent of green belt in England

Role of the Green Belt to check the unrestricted sprawl of large built up areas to prevent neighbouring towns from merging into one another to assist in safeguarding the countryside from encroachment to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns to assist in urban regeneration by encouraging the recycling of derelict and other urban land NPPF 2012

Sustainability Appraisal How sustainable is our plan? Undertake SA at key stages in the plan- making process

Viability and deliverability “Pursuing sustainable development requires careful attention to viability and costs in plan- making and decision-taking. Plans should be deliverable.” NPPF

Ensuring viability and deliverability For plan-making, this means: Ensuring that the cumulative impact of local standards and policies - when added to nationally required standards - does not put implementation of plan at risk

Whole Plan Viability Source: ‘Viability Testing Local Plans: advice for planning practitioners’, Local Housing Delivery Group

Wish list of discretionary policies

Stakeholder engagement Requirement of planning legislation Helps to create more realistic & deliverable plans Views & knowledge of community form an important part of the Local Plan evidence base

Who to engage? Neighbouring Planning Authorities: DtC Regulatory agencies: The Environment Agency, English Heritage, Natural England Physical infrastructure delivery agencies: highways authority, Highways Agency, utilities companies, Network Rail, public transport providers, airport operators Social infrastructure delivery agencies: local authority education dept, social services, primary care trust, strategic health authority, the Police, charities/NGOs Major landowners including the local authority itself and government departments and agencies Housebuilders and other developers Minerals and waste management industries

How to engage? Early and continuous engagement Understand the organisation Identify responsible individuals Invest in creating partnerships Find out what others feel the Local Plan can do for them Use interactive sessions

Engagement challenges Ensuring early and constructive engagement with neighbouring authorities Engaging communities and developers on strategic issues Ensuring agencies will deliver Involving ‘hard to reach’ groups Balancing ‘breadth’ and ‘depth’ of engagement Making best use of resources

Examination “The Local Plan will be examined by an independent inspector whose role is to assess whether the plan has been prepared in accordance with the Duty to Cooperate, legal and procedural requirements, and whether it is sound” NPPF

NPPF Soundness Test Evidence demonstrating your plan is: -Positively prepared - based on a strategy that seeks to meet needs and requirements of neighbouring LPAs -Justified - most appropriate strategy, when considered against reasonable alternatives, based on proportionate evidence -Effective - deliverable over its period and based on effective joint working on cross-boundary strategic priorities -Consistent with the NPPF - enable the delivery of sustainable development

The role of Members You have a vital leadership role to play to produce a robust Local Plan for your area that has buy in from all parties Key challenge is to listen to the views and aspirations of your constituents and balance this with the professional advice of your planning staff in order to plan for, and meet, the development needs of your area

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