Agenda item

This report presents the revised MoD Concept Statements following consideration of the issues arising from public consultation.  It also provides a response to the request made at a previous Cabinet meeting relating to the implications of further raising the sustainable construction standards applicable to the sites.

The Senior Planning Policy Officer introduced this item to the Panel and highlighted some key issues from within the report.

·  All of the sites generate the need for educational places. However, there are also current and projected educational capacity pressures in the city and the Concept Statements provide the opportunity to identify the contribution of the MoD sites to this issue.  The consultation events have identified opportunities to address these pressures and the potential to provide additional school places to meet need. 

·  Additional land adjoining MoD Ensleigh – The draft Concept Statement for this site highlighted the potential opportunity for development on the sports pitches adjoining the MoD site on land that is outside both the Green Belt and the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.  This is only an opportunity and no allocation is made, the rationale being to enable a more sustainable and self-contained housing led scheme that can better support local facilities and public transport. This would need to be pursued through the Placemaking Plan.

Whilst the site is not included as part of the Concept Statement for redevelopment, it is recommended that the broad position of the Concept Statement on this issue   is retained, although reworded to reinforce the issues raised during the consultation phase, and identifying that further work is undertaken to test the option of development on this adjacent land through the Placemaking Plan.  The outcome of this proactive work would provide the Council with robust evidence that could inform its position when it comes to either allocating this additional area in the Placemaking Plan, or seeking to protect it from development. It would also need to ascertain the likelihood of the site being released for development.

·  Sustainable Construction – A viability assessment is underway to better understand the implications of increasing the proportion of homes to be constructed at higher levels of the Code for Sustainable Homes. The Planning Policy team is working with Transition Bath on this issue and the output of this work will be included as part of the Evidence Base for the Concept Statements.

In response to the rapidly changing economics of delivering housing built to higher levels of the Code and to the Council’s corporate ambitions, it is recommended that the Council’s aspiration should be for all housing to be built to Code Level 5 or above.  Whilst this means that the Council’s aspirations for the MoD sites goes beyond the Council’s Draft Core Strategy which requires all development from 2013 to be Code 4, it is considered to be justified due to the Council’s ambitious carbon reduction targets and the national and local imperative of mitigating climate change.  The sites have the capability to deliver a greater contribution to national and local Carbon Reduction aspirations, and act as a benchmark to the kind of development that can be achieved.

It is however essential to recognise that it is currently not possible through the planning process to require this proportion of homes to be built at higher levels above Code 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes.  However it is the intention of the Council to bring forward these site specific targets in the Placemaking DPD and give greater policy weight to this issue.

·  Housing Numbers – Given the suspension of the Core Strategy process due to housing delivery questions and the concerns made by the Inspector over the flexibility and deliverability assumptions on housing sites, all development sites will need to be reviewed as part of a SHLAA review,  including the assumptions made about the housing capacity on the MoD sites. 

This issue regarding housing numbers was raised consistently throughout the consultation phase and whilst the Council should seek to optimise the use and development of land, it is recommended that the wording of the Concept Statements is modified with regard to the development capacities of the MoD sites to take account of concerns raised by the Core Strategy examination Inspector.  This will help to ensure that other issues of acknowledged importance are given due attention, this also responds to a large proportion of the comments made during the public consultation period into the Draft Concept Statements.

The Chairman asked if during the consultation anybody had suggested the sites should be used to accommodate Gypsies & Travellers.

The Senior Planning Policy Officer replied that he had received some feedback of that nature, but could not recall it exactly at his point in time.

The Chairman asked if the Panel could be sent any written evidence in connection with this particular matter.

The Senior Planning Policy Officer replied that he would send them the information that he had.

Councillor David Martin stated that he welcomed the Draft Concept Statements and appreciated the comments made in relation to education and sustainable construction. He asked if there had been any feedback from the MOD so far on the process.

The Senior Planning Policy Officer replied that they were concerned over the construction of a new school on the Warminster Road site, but that the relationship in general was very good.

Councillor Douglas Nicol commented that alongside the proposed 700 new homes on the Foxhill site Somer (Curo) were planning to do some renovation works in the area. He asked if the subject of district heating had been raised.

The Senior Planning Policy Officer replied that he had been aware of such talks in the past and encouraged them to continue.

Councillor Geoff Ward commented that he was not sure that the documents were strong enough. He added that he was concerned of their effect on the World Heritage Status of the City and he believed the public wanted more of a community feel to the sites with amenities. He called for the appropriate density, mix and height of properties and asked for a reassurance on this matter.

The Divisional Director for Planning and Transport replied that the Council’s development strategy is Brownfield first, if the Council accepts a lower density on these sites it will obviously have repercussions.

The Senior Planning Policy Officer added that the statements set out the challenges ahead and that this will become more of an issue when the planning process is reached.