Rural South Devon and Dartmoor Unitary Authority Putting Our Rural Communities fi Rst
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Rural South Devon and Dartmoor Unitary Authority Putting our rural communities fi rst A concept proposal for Unitary Local Government in Devon that safeguards our rural communities 11 April 2008 Sponsoring authorities: South Hams District Council South Hams District Council and West Devon Borough Council Rural South Devon and Dartmoor Unitary Authority - a concept proposal 1 Contacts David Incoll Nick Payne Chief Executive Corporate Director South Hams District and West Devon Borough Council, West Devon Borough Councils, Kilworthy Park, Kilworthy Park, TAVISTOCK, Devon. PL19 0BZ TAVISTOCK, Devon. PL19 0BZ Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Tel: 01822 813600 Tel: 01822 813600 Alan Robinson Roger Nicholson Strategic Director (Community) Head of Improvement South Hams District Council, South Hams District and Follaton House, Plymouth Road, West Devon Borough Councils, TOTNES, Devon. TQ9 5NE Follaton House, Plymouth Road, TOTNES, Devon. TQ9 5NE Email: [email protected] Tel: 01803 861234 Email: [email protected] Tel: 01803 861234 www.southhams.gov.uk www.westdevon.gov.uk Contents Courtesy of Dartmoor Tourist Association Page Purpose 4 Introduction 5 Context 6 Support 12 Strategic Leadership 13 Neighbourhood Empowerment 16 Value for money and equality of Public Services 19 Affordability 22 Conclusion 23 Appendices 24 Appendix A - Letters of Support 24 All maps in thisis proposal can Appendix B - Statistical Information 27 be viewed in larger Appendix C - MOSAIC’s Defi nitions 30 scale at: www.indevon.org.uk/cms/von.org.uk/cms/ Appendix D - Parish Clusters 31 South Hams District Council 1. This document proposes a unitary solution in response to the Boundary Committee invitation to Purpose submit concepts for the structural review of local government in Devon by 11 April 2008. It aligns with the existing boundaries of South Hams District Council, Teignbridge District Council and West Devon Borough Council. 2. Our proposal provides a unitary proposal for the South Devon and Dartmoor area, which will fi t into an overall structure within Devon. It aligns with the way that ‘Integrated Devon’ (service-based clusters in the North, East and South of the county) is developing and provides each authority with How a future unitary suffi cient critical mass for effi ciency gains and resilience in service delivery. structure in Devon could look North Devon North & Mid Torridge Devon Mid Devon Greater Exeter East Devon Exeter West Devon Teignbridge South Devon & Plymouth Dartmoor Torbay South Hams © Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. South Hams District Council. 4 Licence No. 100022628/2008 Putting our rural communities fi rst Introduction Cllr John Tucker, The South Devon and Dartmoor Leader, South Hams Unitary Authority concept: District Council 3. Is based on existing service delivery because Devon’s size and diversity means public services are increasingly being delivered on a sub-county basis. Cllr James McInnes, 4. Includes Dartmoor National Park and the Leader, general area currently administered by South West Devon Hams District Council, Teignbridge District Borough Council Council and West Devon Borough Council. 5. Places rural issues at its heart, because of the distinct and specifi c challenges faced by our rural communities. Vision 6. Is focussed on local areas, an approach which experience proves has achieved high levels of customer satisfaction. ‘To provide innovative 7. Meets the fi ve criteria set by the Boundary Committee for assessing possible unitary local government for solutions: rural South Devon Broad cross section of support and Dartmoor. Strategic leadership Neighbourhood empowerment We will improve Value for money in provision of services the well being of Affordability residents, support businesses and maintain our special 8. We believe that a rural South Devon environment working and Dartmoor Unitary Authority, with a population of around 260,000, will in partnership with have the necessary critical mass and unity of purpose to be both effective local and strategic and effi cient. agencies.’ RuralRural SouthSo Devon and Dartmoor Unitary Authority - a concept proposal 5 Context A distinctive rural place to which our communities relate and that service organisations recognise. 9. South Devon and Dartmoor is characterised by a mosaic of small towns and villages where people value local community life. It has areas of moorland, rural and coastal landscapes of a high quality and a patchwork of towns and villages. Dartmoor is the largest and wildest area of open country in southern England. SD&D UA Plymouth Torbay DCC (SHDC, TDC, WDBC) Population 259,900 248,100 133,200 740,800 Area in sq miles 1,050 31 24 2,543 Density per hectare 0.98 32 22 1.15 % living in rural areas 96.2%, 91.31%, 100% 0 0 74.0% (Defra 2005) % of area with 83.1%, 83.1%, 61.8% 8.4% 42.0% 54.7% designated landscapes Further statistical information is provided in Appendix B. South Devon and Dartmoor unifi ed by rural sparsity and high quality designated landscapes. Population Designated Density Exmoor Landscapes National Park North Devon AONB Blackdown Hills AONB East Devon AONB Jurassic Coast WHS Dartmoor National Park Legend Cornwall & People per hectare West Devon WHS Legend 0.0 - 0.5 Tamar Valley AONB National Parks 0.6 - 1.0 World Heritage Sites 1.1 - 10.0 North Devon Biosphere 10.1 - 20.0 Exe Estuary Ramsar Wetland Site 20.1 - 100.0 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty South Devon AONB © Crown copyright. All rights reserved. 100019783 2008 © Crown copyright. All rights reserved. 100019783 2008 South Devon and Dartmoor will balance pressure for growth and environmental protection. 6 Putting our rural communities fi rst MOSAIC Groupings by Ward South Hams 10. MOSAIC is a lifestyle classifi cation system designed to identify groupings of consumer behaviour for households and postcodes. The MOSAIC maps (right) show strong similarities across the South Devon and Dartmoor Area. Tables showing percentages can be found in appendix A and explanations of the two Teignbridge major classifi cations within the area are in appendix C. 11. The South Devon and Dartmoor area is one of the safest and most desirable places in England to live. A Royal Mail survey published in March 2008 indicated that Devon was the fourth most popular place for people to move to in the UK. 12. It is a distinctive area, recognised by residents and visitors. Tourism is a key driver of our local economy. South Hams has Sustainable West Devon Tourism Beacon Status and is a leader in ‘green tourism’ initiatives. A recent BBC Holiday Programme survey placed Dartmoor as the BBC’s No.1 Holiday Area. 13. The area has some of the highest satisfaction levels in the whole country and its current constituent authorities are within the top 15 authorities in the country for satisfaction in ‘As a place to live’. 2007 fi gures SHDC TDC WDBC Plymouth Torbay DCC % of residents Satisfi ed with the area 88% 88% 90% 77% 70% 82% as a place to live All in the top 15 Authorities Satisfi ed with the way 62% 63% 62% 47% 43% 50% the authority runs things All in the top 50 authorities Who think their council 73% 58% 73% 50% 41% 65% is trustworthy All in the top 50 authorities Feel informed as to the services provided and 57% 56% 54% 27% 31% 44% the benefi ts All in the top 25 authorities Rural South Devon and Dartmoor Unitary Authority - a concept proposal 7 Baynards Cove, Dartmouth 14. South Devon and Dartmoor is somewhere special but there are signifi cant challenges. People living in the area have chosen to live a rural lifestyle, but some - especially young people - can feel excluded due to high house prices, low incomes and limited access to some services. 15. The General Satisfaction Survey (local) undertaken in 2007/2008 highlighted the following issues across the South Devon and Dartmoor area: The level of crime Health services Most important Affordable decent housing issues for a good Access to nature quality of life Education provision Public Transport Affordable decent housing Issues most in need of Activities for teenagers Improvement to Public transport and the level of traffi c congestion achieve a good Job prospects quality of life Wage levels and local cost of living 8 Putting our rural communities fi rst 16. Rural transport is a concern to many residents particularly within a large geographic area and comparatively low ownership of vehicles. SD&D UA Plymouth Torbay DCC (SHDC, TDC, WDBC) Miles of Road 3,113 n/a n/a 7,963 Vehicles owned by 140,293 98,436 60,202 370,226 residents Vehicles per capita 1.8 2.5 2.2 2.0 Travel times to Barnstaple Travel times to Exeter Travel times to Plymouth Lynton/Lynmouth Lynton/Lynmouth Lynton/Lynmouth Ilfracombe Ilfracombe Ilfracombe Braunton Braunton Braunton Barnstaple Barnstaple Barnstaple South Molton South Molton South Molton Bideford/Northam Bideford/Northam Bideford/Northam Great Torrington Great Torrington Great Torrington Tiverton Tiverton Tiverton Cullompton Cullompton Cullompton Honiton Honiton Honiton Holsworthy Crediton Holsworthy Crediton Holsworthy Crediton Axminster Axminster Axminster Ottery St Mary Ottery St Mary Ottery St Mary Okehampton Okehampton Okehampton Seaton Seaton Seaton Exeter Sidmouth Exeter Sidmouth Exeter Sidmouth Moretonhampstead Exmouth Moretonhampstead Exmouth Moretonhampstead Exmouth Dawlish Dawlish Dawlish Newton Abbot Newton Abbot Newton Abbot Tavistock Te ig nm o ut h Tavistock Te ig nm o ut h Tavistock Te ig nm o ut h Ashburton/Buckfastleigh Legend Ashburton/Buckfastleigh Legend Ashburton/Buckfastleigh Legend Travel time to Devon Town centre Travel time to Devon Town centre Travel time to Devon Town centre 0 - 30 minutes 0 - 30 minutes 0 - 30 minutes To r b a y UA Torbay UA Torbay UA To tn es 31 - 60 minutes To tn es 31 - 60 minutes To tn es 31 - 60 minutes Plymouth UA Plymouth UA Plymouth UA Ivybridge Ivybridge Ivybridge 61 - 90 minutes 61 - 90 minutes 61 - 90 minutes Dartmouth 91 - 120 minutes Dartmouth 91 - 120 minutes Dartmouth 91 - 120 minutes 121 - 150 minutes 121 - 150 minutes 121 - 150 minutes Kingsbridge Kingsbridge Kingsbridge © Crown copyright.