Housing and Employment Land Allocations – EXAMINATION

The Housing and Employment Land Allocations Development Plan Document (DPD) sets out which sites the council intend to allocate for future housing development and where new employment opportunities will be located.

It will also define town and district shopping centre boundaries to show where future retail development should take place and future settlement development limits.

Proposed Main Modifications

Following the closure of the independent examination, the council has prepared a number of Proposed Main Modifications to the DPD at the request of the Planning Inspector who examined the document.

These were set out in a Schedule of Proposed Main Modifications, which was published for a six week consultation period from Wednesday 10 June to Wednesday 22 July 2015. It was accompanied by an updated Sustainability Appraisal (SA) Report and Habitat Regulations Assessment (HRA).

The Inspector

Planning Inspector; Mr Derek Stebbing BA Hons, Dip E.P., MRTPI has been appointed to undertake an independent Examination into the soundness of the Plan.

The Inspector’s task is to consider the soundness of the submitted Plan, based on the criteria set out in paragraph 182 of the National Planning Policy Framework (the Framework). The relevant soundness criteria are whether the Plan is:

1 – positively prepared (based on a strategy that seeks to meet objectively assessed development and infrastructure requirements, including unmet requirements from neighbouring authorities where it is reasonable to do so and consistent with achieving sustainable development);

2 – justified (the most appropriate strategy when considered against the reasonable alternatives, based on proportionate evidence);

3 – effective (the Plan should be deliverable over its period and based on effective joint working on cross-boundary strategic priorities); and

4 – consistent with national policy (the Plan should enable the delivery of sustainable development in accordance with the policies in the Framework)

The Inspector will take into account the representations submitted on the Plan at the Pre Submission stage as far as they relate to soundness considerations. A number of informal debates will take place on the principal matters identified by the Inspector these are termed Hearing Sessions.

Following the closure of the Examination, the Inspector will prepare a report to the Council with precise recommendations; these recommendations may include modifications to the Plan, if such a request is made by the Council.

A briefing note has been prepared by the Inspector to help people the process.

•         Briefing Note from the Inspector

Any queries people may have regarding the Examination process should be directed to the Programme Officer who will be happy to assist.

Examination Documents

The examination Documents contain all documents submitted to the Examination process post submission of the Plan to the Planning Inspectorate.

NOTE: the above maps will be available to view as part of the examination library. Maps of all other settlement development limits will also be available to view as part of the library.

Schedule of Changes

The council has prepared a schedule of changes to the DPD, listed above as EXAM9, which are considered to be minor editing changes that are appropriate to address representations submitted by respondents during the consultation period, and cover changes agreed through the Statements of Common Ground with a number of parties (see Statements of Common Ground Section below).

This schedule is considered to be a live document as it may be subject to further amendments as the hearing session progress. Updated versions will appear above, as appropriate.

The Programme Officer

The Programme Officer, Ian Kemp, will act as the contact for any person who has an interest in the Examination and as a liaison between the Inspector, Council and Respondents.

He is an independent Officer of the Examination and works on behalf of the Inspector to organise and manage the administrative and procedural matters of the Examination process.

Mr Kemp is the appropriate point of contact for any questions relating to timetabling or procedural matters. All statements will also be submitted through him.

Any matters that anyone wishes to raise with the Inspector should be submitted via the Programme Officer.

Contact details:

Ian Kemp
16 Cross Furlong
Wychbold
Droitwich Spa
Worcestershire
WR9 7TA

idkemp@icloud.com

01527 861771

0772 3009166

Mr Kemp will be contacting all Respondents with details of the Examination process in due course.

Hearing Sessions Venue and Timetable

The hearing sessions commenced at 10.00am on Tuesday 13 January 2015 at the Baths Hall, Doncaster Road, Scunthorpe DN15 7RG and ran until Thursday 22 January 2015. A Programme for the hearing sessions can be found below:

• Examination Hearings Programme & Inspector’s Issues And Questions (13.01.2015)

Further Written Statements

Following the deadline for the receipt of respondents written statements, the following statements were received. These can be viewed via the link below.

• Written Statements

Statements of Common Ground

The Council have entered into a number of Statements of Common Ground with several of the respondents to the DPD. To date, five Statements of Common Ground have been agreed.

• SoCG1:   Statement of Common Ground – Lucent Advisors
• SoCG2:   Statement of Common Ground – Highways Agency
• SoCG3:   Statement of Common Ground – Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust
• SoCG4:   Statement of Common Ground – RSPB, Natural England & Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust
• SoCG5:   Statement of Common Ground – Environment Agency& Appendix A: Sequential & Exception Test Paper
• SoCG6:   Statement of Common Ground – Environment Agency

Evidence Base Documents

In preparing the Plan the Council both refer to and were informed by a number of documents that together form the ‘Evidence Base’ for the Examination.

• Evidence Base Documents

This page will be updated regularly as more details about the examination become available.