Joint Annual Monitoring Report 2013/14
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Joint Annual Monitoring Report 2013/14 West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council Monitoring period 1 st April 2013 to 31 st March 2014 Joint Annual Monitoring Report 2013-2014 West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council Contents Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................... 1 1. Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 2 2. Local Development Scheme Progress ...................................................................................... 3 West Dorset, Weymouth & Portland Local Plan ..................................................................... 3 Dorset-wide Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople Site Allocations Joint DPD ........... 4 Neighbourhood Plans.............................................................................................................. 5 Community Infrastructure Levy .............................................................................................. 5 3. Duty to Cooperate .................................................................................................................... 6 4. Environment and Climate Change ............................................................................................ 7 Background ............................................................................................................................. 7 Performance of Planning Policies ........................................................................................... 9 5. Achieving a Sustainable Pattern of Development .................................................................. 11 Background ........................................................................................................................... 11 Performance of Planning Policies ......................................................................................... 13 6. Economy ................................................................................................................................. 15 Background ........................................................................................................................... 15 Performance of Planning Policies ......................................................................................... 16 7. Housing ................................................................................................................................... 18 Background ........................................................................................................................... 18 Performance of Planning Policies ......................................................................................... 19 8. Community Needs and Infrastructure .................................................................................... 21 Background ........................................................................................................................... 21 Performance of Planning Policies ......................................................................................... 22 Appendix A: Data on the Characteristics of West Dorset, Weymouth and Portland ..................... 23 Population ............................................................................................................................. 23 Households ........................................................................................................................... 23 Dwellings ............................................................................................................................... 24 Crime ..................................................................................................................................... 24 Social ..................................................................................................................................... 25 Health .................................................................................................................................... 25 Economy ................................................................................................................................ 26 Environment.......................................................................................................................... 28 Travel..................................................................................................................................... 28 Education .............................................................................................................................. 29 Appendix B: Data on Monitoring Indicators .................................................................................... 30 Joint Annual Monitoring Report 2013-2014 West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council Executive Summary The Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) plays an important role in reporting the progress that the council is making in the preparation of planning documents and the performance of existing planning policies. This AMR covers the monitoring period 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014, and is based on the policies of the emerging West Dorset, Weymouth & Portland Local Plan. This monitoring report is the second AMR prepared jointly by West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council. The AMR reports on the progress made in the preparation of planning documents in 2013/14 with reference to the schedule presented in the Local Development Scheme (LDS). The draft West Dorset, Weymouth and Portland Local Plan was submitted to the Secretary of State on the 24 th June 2013, in line with the milestone in the LDS published in February 2013. However, following submission, the Inspector appointed to undertake the examination of the plan requested that additional consultation be carried out on the changes made to the plan by the councils following the previous consultation stage. Consultation took place between August and October 2013. Following the consultation on modifications to the Local Plan, the Inspector wrote to the councils on 10 December 2013 indicating that he had concerns around a number of issues in the plan. Prior to progressing the examination further, an Exploratory Meeting was held in January 2014 where these issues were discussed in public. In light of the discussions held during the exploratory meeting, the councils agreed to suspend the examination to enable additional work on housing matters to be carried out. A further amended LDS was approved in April 2014. The target dates in the LDS for the delivery of the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) were not met in 2013/14 as modifications to the CIL tariff for West Dorset were made and consulted upon in summer 2013. Good progress is being made on neighbourhood planning work and during 2013/14, the Councils received Neighbourhood Plan area applications for Longburton, Puddletown, Portland and an area including Bridport, Allington and Symondsbury (combined). These local communities are now developing their Neighbourhood Plans with the assistance of the Councils. The LDS indicated that further consultation on Gypsy, Traveller and Travelling Showpeople sites would take place in Autumn 2013. This was delayed as the Gypsy and Traveller and Travelling Showpeople Accommodation Assessment (GTTA) was updated and published in September 2013. Consultants then started work on assessing additional sites which may be included in the DPD. The detailed policy monitoring indicates that the targets had not been met for policies ENV 2 (Wildlife and Habitats), ENV 4 (Heritage Assets), ENV 5 (Flood Risk), SUS 1 (the level of Economic and Housing Growth), HOUS 1 (Affordable Housing), and COM 3 (The Retention of Local Buildings and Community Structure) in the West Dorset, Weymouth and Portland Local Plan. No revisions to the existing policies in the West Dorset, Weymouth and Portland Local Plan are recommended in this report. Page 1 Joint Annual Monitoring Report 2013-2014 West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council 1. Introduction This Annual Monitoring Report (AMR) presents the progress made by West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council in preparing local planning documents and reports on the performance of these documents in meeting their aims and objectives during the period 31 st March 2013 to 1 st April 2014. This AMR has been prepared jointly by West Dorset District Council and Weymouth & Portland Borough Council in recognition of the joint working between the two councils, particularly in relation to the production of a joint West Dorset, Weymouth and Portland Local Plan. This report contains the following: • A review of the progress made in the preparation of the local planning documents including the Local Plan, Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), and Neighbourhood Plans (as recorded in the Local Development Scheme); • A summary of the actions taken in relation to the Council’s Duty to Cooperate whilst developing these documents; • An account of the characteristics of West Dorset, Weymouth and Portland; and • An evaluation of the performance of the strategic approach and policies contained in each chapter of the joint Local Plan, which are: - Environment and Climate Change - Sustainable Pattern of Development - Economy - Housing - Community Needs and Infrastructure