Object

Representation ID: 14061

Received: 09/12/2020

Respondent: MACC Group

Agent: Claremont Planning Consultancy

Legally compliant? Yes

Sound? No

Duty to co-operate? Yes

Policy P5 as currently drafted is not considered to be consistent with national policy, in that it is not striving to significantly boost the supply of housing. This is particularly relevant to windfall sites, where the policy suggests that proposals will only be supported where they contribute towards meeting borough-wide housing needs and towards enhancing local character and distinctiveness. It is considered that this seeks to conflate two issues of delivering housing and ensuring design quality.

Clause 6 of this policy relates to density, confirming that it will be informed by a number of factors, including the need to maximise the efficient use of land, an appropriate
housing mix, responding to local character and distinctiveness, and scale, type and location of development. There is the potential for some of these factors to conflict, notably the need to efficiently use land in accessible locations, whilst responding to local character and distinctiveness.

The Framework at Paragraph 123 requires plans to contain policies that optimise the use of land and meet as much of the identified need for housing as possible. In a Borough with high levels of housing need and that is constrained by the Green Belt, it is particularly important that the Council is aspirational and encourages proposals that comprise higher density developments in order to maximise housing delivery.