Agenda item

Cabinet received a report, the purpose of which was to enable it to consider the proposal to commence preparation of a Local Plan for Peterborough and, if it this was agreed, for a new Local Plan to be produced.

Councillor Hiller, Cabinet Member for Growth, Planning, Housing and Economic Development, introduced the report and highlighted the main issues contained within.

The current Local Plan was four years old and recent evidence indicated that more land was required for homes and to allow for businesses to grow. Preparing a Plan was a statutory process and would take approximately three years from start to finish. A new Plan was therefore required for preparation and the first part of the process was for a Local Development Scheme to be adopted, which set out the timetable for the development of a plan. Cabinet’s approval was therefore sought for this Scheme.

Following additional comments from the Council’s Corporate Director Growth and Regeneration, Cabinet debated the report and key points raised and responses to questions included:

·         An updated Plan was required in order to ensure the Council remained in control of where new development was to take place;

·         All strategies of the Council needed to show clear outcomes associated with health and there would be policies running throughout the new Plan highlighting how better health outcomes would be achieved;

·         Peterborough has always historically been ‘ahead of the pack’ with such document and this needed to continue;

·         The culture and recreation side needed to be taken into account also;

·         Affordable housing would be an integral consideration of the Plan; and

·         Peterborough was the second fastest growing city and the re-writing of the Plan would assist with the needs of the city going forward.

Cabinet considered the report and RESOLVED:

1.   To authorise officers to commence a review of the Local Plan; and

2.   To approve the Local Development Scheme (LDS), which set out a timetable for the production of a new Local Plan, and brought it into effect from 31 July 2015.

          REASONS FOR THE DECISION

A review of the Local Plan would:

·           Ensure that new development continued to take place in planned locations and help demonstration of a ‘5 year housing land supply’ (a Government requirement), reducing the risk of challenge from speculative, unplanned development;

·           Be an opportunity to identify new locations for growth in Peterborough, which in turn would meet our longer term housing and employment needs;

·           Maintain the Council’s strong reputation for high quality strategic planning by keeping the Local Plan as up to date as possible;

·     Provide certainty about future housing delivery;

·     Align preparation of a new Local Plan with the review of other corporate strategies, including the Local Transport Plan, Housing Strategy and Green Infrastructure Plan;

·      Identify additional employment sites to accommodate increasing commercial demand;

·     Ensure continued and potentially additional income via New Homes Bonus, business rate growth and council tax income; and

·      Ensure an overall, an up-to-date Local Plan, covering a longer timeframe, means more certainty for everyone (the public, developers and public service providers) about where growth will take place.

          ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS CONSIDERED

            The only alternative option considered was to do nothing and review the situation again in 12 months. This option was rejected because it would fail to take advantage of the benefits of commencing a new Local Plan.