Doncaster Local Development Framework Green Space Audit (Part One A) Assessment of Provision by Community Profile Area
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Doncaster Local Development Framework Green Space Audit (Part One A) Assessment of Provision by Community Profile Area Evidence Base July 2013 WWW.Doncaster.gov.uk/LDF 1 Contents Introduction 2 Background 3 Objectives and Outcomes 3 Methodology 4 Green Space Functions, Benefits 6 Green Space Standards 6 Borough Wide Results Summary (Quantity) 10 Assessment of Supply by Category 10 Assessment of Supply by Community Profile Area 13 Appendix One: Community Profile Area Green Space Audit Provision and Summaries 15 2 Introduction 1) Doncaster covers approximately 226 square miles and is the largest metropolitan borough in the country. The borough has a population of over 290,000 people, all of whom have a right to access nearby good quality green spaces. This revised green space re-audit will provide the council with up to date information on green space location, coverage and provision. It will provide a comprehensive assessment of the current level of provision by community profile area for different types of green space, including formal sports pitches, informal children‟s play spaces, allotments, woodlands and nature conservation areas. The council will for the first time have a comprehensive picture of the provision of all green spaces by community profile area. 2) The re-audit will contribute toward the evidence base required for the Local Development Framework (LDF) Sites and Policies Development Plan Document. It will also be a useful reference document complementing Core Strategy policy (CS17) providing green infrastructure. This document is makes no decisions and provides evidence only. Further work will be required to identify if green spaces are surplus to requirement. 3) „Part two‟ of the green space audit will investigate the quality and value of the sites. Once complete it allow the council to identify priority green spaces, ascertain their formal and informal intended use and allow the council to make strategic decisions on priorities and long term management. It will also look at community profile areas where provision exceeds the defined standards and investigate if green spaces in these areas are surplus to requirement. 4) The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires all local authorities to have up to date information against which decisions can be made. Paragraphs 73 and 74 of the NPPF state: Planning policies should be based on robust and up to date assessment of the needs for open space, sport and recreation facilities and opportunities for new provision. The assessments should identify specific needs and quantitative or qualitative (provision) including deficits or surpluses of open space, sports and recreational facilities in the local area. Information gained from the assessments should be used to determine what open space, sports and recreational provision is required. Existing open space, sports and recreational buildings and land, including playing fields, should not be built on unless: an assessment has been undertaken which has clearly shown the open space, buildings or land to be surplus to requirements; or the loss resulting from the proposed development would be replaced by equivalent or better provision in terms of quantity and quality in a suitable location; or the development is for alternative sports and recreational provision, the needs for which clearly outweigh the loss. 3 Background 5) The 1998 Unitary Development Plan documented and mapped open spaces in the borough. These open space policy areas included amenity areas, playgrounds, playing fields, parks allotments, cemeteries and woodlands in council ownership. In 2001 the council carried out its first comprehensive green space audit which identified over a thousand green spaces, far more than originally thought. The audit was updated in 2007 and provided the background to the currently adopted (but out of date) green space strategy. The re-audit will update and address any anomalies identified in the 2007 audit. It will also address and rationalise the UDP RL1 and RL5 open space policy areas. The revised audit and rationalisation process will result in „open space‟ policy areas which will go on the LDF Proposals Map as the new „open space policy areas‟. 6) The two previous green space audits assessed provision by ward boundary; the new audit is fundamentally different in that it assesses green spaces by the community profiles identified by the local strategic partnership „Doncaster Together‟. The local strategic partnership has identified 88 community profiles, one for each of the communities in the Doncaster area. A wealth of useful information is held in the publicly accessible data observatory for each of these areas. The material held in the observatory paints a picture of what a community is like, identifying; its population, educational attainment, crime levels and health issues. The new audit is an ideal opportunity to provide additional information on green space provision in each of the areas. This can subsequently be used to identify any local correlation between health issues and access to green spaces. Objectives and Outcomes 7) To meet with requirements identified in the NPPF the audit will firstly look at quantity and accessibility and then quality and value. „Part One‟ will: identify and update all green space, sport and recreational facilities providing the evidence to create a new open space policy layer for the LDF Proposals Map establish and agree quantity standards and accessibility isochrones (buffers) for each relevant green space category create a GIS map layer showing the accessibility buffers Identify deficient areas based on agreed quantity standards produce an summary showing green space provision for each of the 88 community profile areas ensure green space is accounted for in the Local Development Framework „Sites and Polices‟ Development Plan Document provide the evidence base to enable scoping the proposals for green space (green infrastructure) contributions for new development proposals produce evidence base document „Assessing and Rationalising RL5 Policy Areas‟ produce evidence base document „Assessing and Rationalising (UDP) RL1 Open Space Policy Area provide a comprehensive evidence base identifying green space provision for use by various organisations within the council 4 Methodology 8) This re-audit will provide a GIS map based database of all green spaces in the borough, including an up-to-date a breakdown of site information by name, identification number, area (Ha), play facilities (MUGA, skate park, play area) if present, and additional site notes if required. Each site has also been categorised by typology as shown below to allow for analysis of provision against adopted standards. Type Name Type Number Allotments 7.3 Amenity (housing) 7.2.6.4 Amenity (other) 7.2.6.5 Amenity (road verge) 7.2.6.1 Campsite (amenity other) 8.4 Cemetery 7.4 Fish ponds (amenity other) 8.1 Formal 7.2.1.1 Formal (school) to add Hayfield and Armthorpe Schools 7.2.1.2 Golf course 8.2 Green corridor 7.2.5 Informal 7.2.2 Marinas and Moorings (amenity other) 8.3 Nature conservation areas 2.2 Public parks 7.2.3 Recreation - other (amenity other) 8.5 Woodland 2.1 Green Space of Local Value 8.6 Category Definitions Type Name Definition Allotments Areas of land, which are cultivated by the public as small plots. They include statutory and non-statutory allotment sites and smallholdings and include all sites irrespective of ownership or management. Amenity (housing, road Amenity areas are public open spaces that improve and verge and other) enhance the appearance of the local environment. Generally, amenity areas are either unsuitable for recreational use or recreational use is prohibited, and as a result they are distinct from informal open space suitable for children‟s play. They include road verges, roundabouts, and amenity areas in housing developments. „Amenity (other)‟ is also an included category to cover areas that provide opportunities for alternative recreational activity (such as model aircraft flying and horse racing) or are council owned and capped landfill sites used for passive recreation such as dog walking. 5 Cemetery A burial ground generally laid out in the form of a park. Churchyards are also included in this category Formal Outdoor sports facilities including pitches, greens, courts and athletics tracks Formal (school) As above but within the education sector which are available for public use through written agreement Golf course Areas laid out for playing the sport of golf Green corridor An area connecting or capable of connecting green spaces to improve green infrastructure and wildlife connectivity. Informal Casual un-equipped playing space within residential areas, or areas for children and young people containing a range of facilities and an environment that has been designed to provide focused opportunities for outdoor play Public parks Areas of land which are public gardens, recreation or pleasure grounds containing walks and facilities for passive or active recreation Nature conservation areas Accessible designated and un-designated wildlife areas Woodland containing habitats that contribute toward local, regional or national biodiversity and provide opportunities for passive and active recreation, and environmental education Local green space A green area close to the local community, which has local significance or community value (see paragraph 77, NPPF) 6 Green Space Functions, Benefits Functions and Benefits 9) There are a wide range of green space benefits which