These are the kinds of questions that we all ask ourselves from time to time and recently Mendip residents

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Additional Policy Options for Delivering Affordable Housing in the Villages In addition to the negotiation of affordable housing, existing evidence of housing need points to the need to retain the rural exceptions policy in designated villages. This approach allows small sites in villages, that would not normally be used for housing, to be used for affordable housing to meet identified local needs. All homes in exceptions schemes are affordable homes. In these cases, landowners make their land available at virtually nil cost and Housing Corporation grant is almost always necessary to make these schemes happen. Mechanisms are put in place to ensure that the housing is always affordable and that all initial and subsequent occupiers have a local connection. Earlier in this paper, we set out a number of options for the identification of villages that should act as a focus for development away from the towns. The Core Strategy would seek to achieve greater self-containment in these places by promoting development to better meet local needs, including local housing needs. Some of these options provide for appropriately scaled rural exceptions schemes. Option 18a Under the current approach, exception sites are not identified in the development plan. Rather, in response to an identified local need demonstrated through a parish survey, a suitable site is identified in consultation with landowners, the parish council and local people. ...

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• Publié par: Mafor
• Nombre de lectures: 8
• Langue: English

Extrait

130

Introduction

and Context

A Vision for

Mendip

Core Strategy

Issues and Options

Frome

G’bury

Shepton

Mallet

Street

Wells

Villages

Delivering

the Strategy

Appendix

Additional Policy Options for Delivering Affordable Housing in the Villages

In addition to the negotiation of affordable housing, existing evidence of housing

need points to the need to retain the rural exceptions policy in designated villages.

This approach allows small sites in villages, that would not normally be used for

housing, to be used for affordable housing to meet identified local needs. All homes

in exceptions schemes are affordable homes. In these cases, landowners make their

land available at virtually nil cost and Housing Corporation grant is almost always

necessary to make these schemes happen. Mechanisms are put in place to ensure

that the housing is always affordable and that all initial and subsequent occupiers

have a local connection.

Earlier in this paper, we set out a number of options for the identification of villages

that should act as a focus for development away from the towns. The Core Strategy

would seek to achieve greater self-containment in these places by promoting

development to better meet local needs, including local housing needs. Some of

these options provide for appropriately scaled rural exceptions schemes.

Option 18a

Under the current approach, exception sites are not identified in the development

plan. Rather, in response to an identified local need demonstrated through a

parish survey, a suitable site is identified in consultation with landowners, the

parish council and local people. One option is to continue with this approach by

including a policy in the Core Strategy. The advantage of this approach is that it

offers flexibility, allowing parcels of land to come forward as need is identified over

the plan period. The disadvantage is that the development plan is not being used

to its full potential in proactively bringing forward specific sites to meet identified

need.

Option 18b

In addition to the above Option, specific suitable exception sites, of an appropriate

scale in designated villages, could be allocated exclusively for affordable housing

through the preparation of a "Small Sites Development Plan Documents" that

would follow on from the Core Strategy. The Core Strategy could set criteria for

assessing the suitability of sites to be allocated for rural exceptions affordable

housing.

Question 88a:

Which option do you think is likely to be most effective in

delivering affordable housing in rural communities?

Question 88b:

Are there alternative options we should investigate?

Accommodation for Gypsies and Travellers

Under the Housing Act 2004, local authorities have a duty to consider the

accommodation needs of Gypsies and Travellers and to have a strategy in place

which sets out how any identified need will be met.

131

Introduction

and Context

A Vision for

Mendip

Core Strategy

Issues and Options

Frome

G’bury

Shepton

Mallet

Street

Wells

Villages

Delivering

the Strategy

Appendix

As a result of Mendip's geographic location and the large number of festivals taking

place within the district, Mendip is an area of considerable importance for the

travelling community. Based upon the Accommodation Needs Assessment for

Gypsies and Travellers (February 2006), the Secretary of State's proposed changes

to the RSS set requirements for 57 additional residential pitches and 30 additional

transit pitches for the period to 2011. Since the base date, an additional 12

residential pitches have been provided in the district.

The Accommodation Needs Assessment shows that there is a need for site provision

across the district and that the need is not confined to one particular locality. Also,

the needs of Gypsies and Travellers are diverse and a number of often small sites

will be required to meet the needs of different groups. For these reasons, the

provision of one strategic site is not an appropriate option. Under these

circumstances, the role of the Core Strategy will be to provide criteria as a basis for

the selection of sites to be allocated either in a Gypsy and Traveller Sites

Development Plan Document, or as part of a broader Small Site Allocations

Development Plan Document that would also allocate sites for other uses. These

criteria would also provide a "rural exceptions site policy", as described in Circular

01/2006, for considering planning applications that are submitted ahead of the

Development Plan Document and for any schemes that subsequently come forward

on unallocated sites.

A further accommodation needs assessment is currently being commissioned by the

local authorities in Somerset to provide a more up-to-date picture and to look beyond

2011. This further assessment will help to inform the preparation of the development

plan document that will allocate sites for Gypsy and Traveller accommodation.

The following considerations have been identified from earlier consultation, a review

of national policy and the Secretary of State's proposed changes to the RSS.

Your

views on whether and how they should be translated into appropriate criteria

will be appreciated:

•

There is a small area (5.3 square kilometres) of Green Belt in the north-

eastern corner of the district. New gypsy and traveller sites in the Green Belt

are normally inappropriate development, as defined in Planning Policy

Guidance 2: "Green Belts". It will be possible to meet accommodation needs

outside this area.

•

The internationally designated sites of environmental importance within the

district enjoy statutory protection. Planning Policy Statement 9: "Biodiversity

and Geological Conservation" (CLG 2005) discourages the inclusion of

policies that reiterate this. Local planning authorities are advised to identify

the sites on proposals maps and to cross refer to the statutory protection.

•

In areas of the district with a nationally recognised designation (Sites of

Special Scientific Interest, National Nature Reserves, Areas of Outstanding

Natural Beauty, Scheduled Ancient Monuments, Conservation Areas and

Historic Parks and Gardens), as with any other form of development, planning

permission for Gypsy and Traveller sites should only be allocated in a

Development Plan Document or permission granted where it can be

demonstrated that the objectives of the designation will not be compromised

by the development.

132

Introduction

and Context

A Vision for

Mendip

Core Strategy

Issues and Options

Frome

G’bury

Shepton

Mallet

Street

Wells

Villages

Delivering

the Strategy

Appendix

•

Circular 01/2006 advises that sites on the outskirts of built-up areas may be

appropriate. Rural settings, when not subject to special planning constraints,

are acceptable in principle. In assessing the suitability of such sites, local

authorities are advised to be realistic about the availability, or likely availability,

of alternatives to the car in accessing local services. The benefits of easier

access to GP and other health services and of children attending school on a

regular basis are also relevant.

•

Sites should respect the scale of, and not dominate, the nearest settled

community. The promotion of peaceful and integrated coexistence between

the site and the local community is relevant. Sites should also avoid placing

an undue pressure on local infrastructure.

•

Sites should not be located in areas of high risk of flooding, including

functional flood plains, given the particular vulnerability of caravans.

•

Consideration should be given to the potential for noise and other disturbance

from the movement of vehicles to and from the site, the stationing of vehicles

on the site, and on-site business activities. However, projected vehicle

movements for Gypsy and Traveller sites should be assessed on an individual

basis for each site. Proposal should not be rejected if they would only give

rise to modest additional daily vehicle movements and/or the impact on minor

roads would not be significant.

Question 89a:

Do you agree that the seven considerations above should

form the basis for criteria for selecting suitable site

allocations for accommodation Gypsies and Travellers in a

Site Allocations Development Plan Document?

Question 89b:

Bearing in mind the need to avoid repetition of national

policy, is there a need for the Core Strategy to set a policy

against which applications on the other sites will be

judged?