Agenda item

Councillor Brook introduced the report and highlighted key elements of its

content.

At the invitation of the Chairman, Councillors Evans and Thompson addressed Cabinet as summarised below.

Councillor Evans

·         A request that Ward Councillors be notified of any communications with parish councils in their area;

·         A request that the consultation period be extended to the end of September as many parish councils did not meet over the August period;

·         Concern that recruitment of additional staff required had not taken place before now and a request that those employed have a good knowledge of the local district;

·         With reference to paragraph 11.11, a desire that the Council, through its PUSH representation, would robustly resist any attempts for Winchester to take on any of neighbouring local authorities housing requirements.

·         A suggestion that the new Plan move away from the use of market towns as a definition to avoid burdening existing market towns with even more housing requirement;

·         Concern that the proposals for the new Plan could lead to additional speculative planning applications from developers.

Councillor Thompson

·         Welcomed the opportunity to revise the current Local Plan;

·         Highlighted particular issue in Winchester Town and its immediate surroundings of the requirement for additional purpose built student accommodation.  The number of properties being converted into Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) was increasing in Winchester which could have a significant impact on the surrounding area.  It was essential that the Council engaged with the Universities to ascertain their plans and to make suitable sites available for student accommodation.

The Chairman requested that Officers be reminded of the importance of ensuring that Ward Councillors were notified when a parish communication was issued (with regard to this specific consultation, it was noted that all Members had been notified via the weekly Democratic Services bulletin).

The Head of Strategic Planning confirmed that there was a confirmed five year supply of land in the current Plan which would assist the Council in refusing speculative planning applications that did not accord with the current Plan.

The Head of Strategic Planning suggested that rather than further extend the consultation period as requested, any parish councils who might have difficulty making the deadline proposed contact the Council and allowances would be made.  Councillor Brook highlighted that this was standard practice and she would ensure all Councillors were aware in order that they could advise parish councils in their area accordingly.

As the Council’s representative on PUSH, the Chairman gave assurances that she would defend the Council’s position.

With regard to student accommodation, Councillor Brook confirmed that the Council would adopt a holistic approach and take necessary steps once further information was available (for example, the mandatory licensing of HMOs would provide additional details).

The Head of Strategic Planning responded to Cabinet Members’ questions as summarised below:

·         the review of the Community Intrastructure Levy (CIL) Charging Schedule would examine discrepancies between areas under the Council’s Local Plan and those under the Plan for the South Downs National Park. 

·         the “statements of common ground” requirements applied not only to neighbouring local planning authorities but also strategic partners, such as the Environment Agency.

·         The Council’s response to Eastleigh Borough Council’s Regulation 19 on its Plan would be issued via Portfolio Holder Decision Notice by the end of July.  Eastleigh were required to submit their Plan for examination by the end of October 2018 and the Inspector’s Inquiry stage was expected to take place in February/March 2019.  Winchester’s Plan was not directly affected by this.

·         Parish Councils were being encouraged to update their Neighbourhood Plans and Village Design Statements to refer to the current Plan.

·         The review would include consideration of water supply for the district and also the requirement for digital connectivity on new developments. 

Cabinet agreed to the following for the reasons outlined above and set out in the Report.

            RESOLVED:

1.         That agreement be given to commence the preparation of a new Local Plan and that the Head of Strategic Planning be authorised to consult on its scope and content in accordance with Regulation 18 of the Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012.  

2.         That agreement be given to undertake a parallel update of the Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Charging Schedule.

3.         That the Head of Strategic Planning be authorised to commission such technical studies and other evidence gathering as is necessary to provide the evidence base for the Local Plan and CIL using resources currently held in the Local Plan Reserve.